Using Linkilo with the Classic Editor

Linkilo works on Classic Editor sites

If you've installed the Classic Editor plugin (or your theme defaults to it), Linkilo runs exactly the way you'd expect — no special configuration, no compatibility mode. The metabox appears below the editor, suggestions are inline, and Apply writes a link straight into post_content.

This is the simplest of all the editor integrations because Classic stores everything in plain HTML in post_content and Linkilo can edit that directly.

Where the metabox appears

Open any post in the Classic Editor. Scroll below the main editor box. You'll see two Linkilo metaboxes:

• AI Link Suggestions — the per-post suggestion panel (AI tab + Legacy tab).
• Linkilo Profile — the per-post profile and keyword settings (focus keyword, custom keywords, negative keywords).

If a metabox is missing:

1. Click Screen Options at the top-right of the post-edit screen.
2. Check the box next to the Linkilo metabox you want shown.
3. Confirm the post type is enabled in Linkilo → Settings → General → Find suggested URLs in these post types only.

How "Apply" works

When you Apply a suggestion on a Classic Editor post:

1. Linkilo finds the source sentence in post_content (which is just HTML — no blocks, no shortcodes to walk).
2. Wraps the anchor text in an <a> tag.
3. Saves post_content back.

When you reload the editor or switch to the Visual / Text tab, the link is there.

Visual tab vs Text tab

The Visual tab (TinyMCE) renders the post HTML for editing. The Text tab shows the raw HTML. Linkilo's links work the same in both — when you switch tabs, TinyMCE rewrites the HTML slightly (whitespace, attribute order) but the link itself survives.

If you switch to the Text tab and edit the raw HTML by hand, then switch back to Visual, TinyMCE may reformat your manual edits. That's a TinyMCE quirk, not a Linkilo one. The link Linkilo inserts is standard, valid HTML and survives the round-trip.

When to use Classic over Gutenberg

The choice is personal preference for most sites. Reasons people stay on Classic:

• Older site, large amount of existing content authored with TinyMCE — switching to Gutenberg can break custom CSS or shortcode-heavy posts.
• Custom theme that's deeply integrated with TinyMCE.
• Workflow comfort.

Linkilo doesn't care which you use. Both run the same engine, return the same suggestions, and have the same metabox.

Mixing Classic and Gutenberg on the same site

The Classic Editor plugin has a setting at Settings → Writing that lets you choose:

• Classic for all users — everyone sees Classic.
• Block editor for all users — everyone sees Gutenberg.
• Allow users to switch — per-user choice.

Linkilo respects whatever editor is loaded for the current post. You can author a post in Classic, then later open the same post in Gutenberg — Linkilo's metabox shows up either way.

Troubleshooting

The metabox is not visible

Open Screen Options at the top-right of the post-edit screen and tick the Linkilo metaboxes. Save the screen-options state by reloading.

Apply succeeded but the editor doesn't show the link

Reload the post-edit screen. The editor reads post_content on load; mid-session changes from a metabox don't auto-refresh the TinyMCE buffer.

Some links Linkilo added are formatted oddly

The Visual tab's TinyMCE applies its own cleanup pass. If a link looks wrong in Visual but correct in the Text tab, the issue is TinyMCE's auto-formatting — not Linkilo's insertion. Adjusting TinyMCE filters (or just leaving the link alone in Text view) is the workaround.

See also

• Using Linkilo with Gutenberg
• Using Linkilo with Elementor
• Using Linkilo with Divi
• Does it work with page builders? (overview)