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Drupal's block visibility system in versions 10.3 and 11.x gives site builders powerful tools for controlling exactly where and when blocks appear. Combined with a few well-maintained contributed modules, you can handle surprisingly complex visibility rules through configuration alone.

This guide walks you through the core visibility options, the most useful contrib modules for no-code control, and practical workflows for common scenarios. By the end, you'll know which approach fits your needs and how to avoid the pitfalls that trip up many site builders.

Prerequisites

Before getting started, make sure you have:

• Drupal 10.3 or 11.x installed and running
• Administrator access to your site's configuration
• Composer available for installing contrib modules (if you choose that route)
• Basic familiarity with Drupal's Block Layout interface (Structure → Block layout)

No coding knowledge is required. Everything covered here happens through Drupal's administrative interface.

Step 1: Understanding Core Block Visibility

Drupal core provides solid visibility controls right out of the box. You'll find these options when you configure any block through Structure → Block layout → [Your Theme] → Configure (on an existing block) or Place block.

Built-in Visibility Conditions

Every block in Drupal comes with these visibility tabs:

Pages (Request Path)

Control visibility based on URL patterns. You can specify:

• <front> for the homepage only
• /about for a specific page
• /blog/* for all pages under the blog path
• Multiple paths, one per line

Choose "Show for the listed pages" or "Hide for the listed pages" to control the logic.

Content Types

Show blocks only on node pages of specific types. If you want a sidebar to appear only on Article pages, check "Article" and leave other content types unchecked.

Roles

Control access based on user roles. Common patterns:

• Check only "Authenticated user" for logged-in visitors
• Check only "Anonymous user" for logged-out visitors
• Check specific roles like "Member" or "Premium subscriber"

Languages

For multilingual sites, show blocks based on interface or content language.

Practical Example: Homepage-Only Promo Banner

Here's how to set up a promotional block that appears only on your homepage:

• Navigate to Structure → Block layout
• Click "Place block" in your desired region (like "Header" or "Content")
• Select or create your promotional block
• Under the "Pages" visibility tab, enter <front>
• Select "Show for the listed pages"
• Save the block

That's it. Your promo appears on the homepage and nowhere else.

Practical Example: Members-Only Sidebar

For a sidebar that only logged-in users see:

• Configure the block in your sidebar region
• Under the "Roles" visibility tab, check "Authenticated user"
• Leave "Anonymous user" unchecked
• Save the block

Anonymous visitors won't see this block at all.

Our experience shows that these core options handle about 70% of typical visibility needs. The remaining cases usually require one of the contrib modules covered next.

Step 2: Installing Block Visibility Groups for Reusable Rules

When you have multiple blocks that should follow the same visibility rules, configuring each one individually becomes tedious and error-prone. Block Visibility Groups solves this by letting you define named groups of conditions that you can apply to any block.

Installation

Install via Composer:

composer require drupal/block_visibility_groups:^2.0

Then enable the module at Extend or via Drush:

drush en block_visibility_groups

Creating Your First Visibility Group

• Navigate to Structure → Block Visibility Groups
• Click "Add block visibility group"
• Give it a descriptive name like "Blog Section" or "Members Area"
• Add conditions by clicking "Add new condition"
• Select the condition type (Request Path, Content Type, User Role, etc.)
• Configure the specifics
• Save the group

Applying Groups to Blocks

Once you've created a group:

• Go to Structure → Block layout
• Configure any block
• You'll see a new "Visibility group" option
• Select your group instead of configuring individual conditions

The real value shows up when you need to change the rules. Update the group once, and every block using that group updates automatically.

Example: Blog Section Group

Create a group called "Blog Section" with these conditions:

• Request Path: /blog/* (Show for listed pages)
• Content Type: Article (Show for selected content types)

Now any block assigned to this group—related posts, author bio, newsletter signup—will appear only in your blog section. When you add a new blog URL pattern like /news/*, update the group once and all blocks follow.

Step 3: Using Block Visibility Conditions for "Not X" Logic

A common requirement is "show this block everywhere except on certain content types." Core's negation checkbox can produce unexpected results—your block might disappear on non-node pages like Views or search results.

Block Visibility Conditions adds cleaner "Not X" conditions that behave more intuitively.

Installation

composer require drupal/block_visibility_conditions:^2.2
drush en block_visibility_conditions

When to Use It

Use Block Visibility Conditions when you need:

• Not Node Type: Show on all pages except certain content types, while still appearing on Views, search, and other non-node pages
• Not Taxonomy Vocabulary: Similar logic for taxonomy-based visibility
• Not Product Type: For Commerce sites, control visibility around product pages

Example: Show Everywhere Except Landing Pages

Say you have a sidebar newsletter signup that should appear everywhere except on your carefully designed landing pages:

• Configure the block
• Add the "Not node type" condition (not the standard "Content type" condition)
• Select "Landing Page" content type
• Save

The block now appears on articles, your homepage, search results, Views pages—everywhere except Landing Page nodes.

Step 4: Layout Builder Visibility with Context

If you're using Layout Builder for page layouts, you'll notice that per-block visibility controls aren't as developed as in the traditional Block Layout. A core issue is actively working on adding visibility conditions directly to Layout Builder blocks, but it hasn't landed yet.

In the meantime, the Context module combined with Layout Builder Context Integration provides a solid workaround.

Installation

composer require drupal/context drupal/layout_builder_context
drush en context layout_builder_context

How Context Works

Context lets you define scenarios (called "contexts") based on conditions, then trigger reactions when those contexts are active. For Layout Builder, the reaction can show or hide entire sections or blocks.

Setting Up a Campaign Context

Imagine you want a promotional section to appear on your homepage only during a sale period:

• Navigate to Structure → Context
• Click "Add context"
• Name it "Holiday Sale Campaign"
• Add conditions: Request Path: <front>
• Optionally add date-based conditions if you have a date condition module
• Add a reaction that controls your Layout Builder section visibility
• Save

Now you can enable or disable the entire campaign context without touching individual blocks.

Step 5: Choosing the Right Approach

Here's a quick decision framework:

Use Core Visibility When:

• You have simple, per-block rules
• Path, role, content type, or language conditions are sufficient
• You don't need to share rules across multiple blocks

Use Block Visibility Groups When:

• Multiple blocks share the same visibility rules
• You want to update rules in one place
• You're managing section-based visibility (blog, shop, members area)

Use Block Visibility Conditions When:

• You need "everywhere except X" logic
• Core's negation produces unexpected results
• You're dealing with Commerce product types

Use Context Layout Builder Integration When:

• You're building with Layout Builder
• You need scenario-based visibility (campaigns, user segments)
• You want layout-level control, not just block-level

Common Mistakes to Avoid

Forgetting the Leading Slash

Path patterns in Drupal require the leading slash. /blog/* works; blog/* might not behave as expected. Always include the slash.

Mixing Too Many Tools

Using core conditions, Block Visibility Groups, and Context on the same block creates debugging nightmares. We've found that teams have the best results when they pick one primary tool for visibility and stick with it. Use core for simple cases, and one contrib module for complex ones—not all of them simultaneously.

Confusing Block Layout with Layout Builder

Blocks placed through Structure → Block Layout follow Block Layout visibility rules. Blocks placed through Layout Builder follow Layout Builder rules (and whatever integration modules you're using). When a block "disappears," the first debugging question should be: where was this block placed?

Not Clearing Cache

Visibility rules are cached aggressively for performance. After making changes, clear your site's cache:

drush cr

Or use the "Clear all caches" button at Configuration → Performance.

Overlapping Conditions

A block assigned to a visibility group that hides it, plus individual conditions that show it, creates confusing behavior. Keep your logic in one place.

Testing and Verification

After configuring visibility rules, verify they work correctly:

Manual Testing Checklist

• Test as different users: Log out and check anonymous visibility. Log in as different roles and verify role-based rules.
• Check multiple paths: Don't just test the paths you configured. Check paths you didn't specify to make sure blocks appear or hide correctly there too.
• Test edge cases: What happens on 404 pages? Search results? Views pages? These non-node pages often reveal unexpected behavior.
• Clear cache between tests: Visibility changes might not appear until you clear cache.

Using Browser Tools

• Open your browser's developer tools
• Check the Network tab for cached responses
• Use private/incognito mode to simulate anonymous users
• Log in as different test users to verify role-based visibility

Documenting Your Setup

For any site with complex visibility rules, document:

• Which tool controls visibility for which blocks
• The logic behind each visibility group or context
• Any known limitations or workarounds

Future you (or your colleagues) will appreciate this when something needs debugging six months later.

Conclusion

Drupal's block visibility system gives site builders real control over where and when content appears, all through configuration. Core visibility handles straightforward requirements like path-based and role-based rules. Block Visibility Groups adds reusable rule sets when you're managing multiple blocks. Block Visibility Conditions fills in the gaps with cleaner "not X" logic. And Context bridges the gap for Layout Builder visibility until core catches up.

Teams we work with report that starting with core visibility and adding one contrib module when needed produces the cleanest, most maintainable setups. The key is choosing your primary tool and using it consistently rather than mixing approaches.

If your site needs complex visibility rules—personalization based on user behavior, time-sensitive campaigns, or integration with your marketing automation—the configuration-only approach has limits. Knowing where those limits are helps you plan appropriately. We regularly help teams design visibility systems that balance editorial control with technical sustainability. If you're building a Drupal site that needs sophisticated block targeting, we can help you map out an approach that works for your content team without creating maintenance headaches down the road.