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How to show/hide Arrows & Dots in WordPress Carousel slider?

Updated On : September 28, 2026By : Reading Time : 3 minutes

Key Takeaways

  • Carousel Anything en Nexter Blocks Pro muestra flechas y puntos por separado, con flechas desactivadas por defecto y pagination: true en un carrusel intacto.
  • La configuración se escribe en un atributo data-splide del carrusel, y en una página publicada se ve arrows: true y pagination: true cuando ambos controles están activados.
  • Las opciones son por dispositivo y por punto de ruptura, con flechas para escritorio, tableta y teléfono, y puntos con valores separados en 1024 y 767.
Table of Contents

A carousel with no visible controls looks like a static image, and most visitors will never discover the other slides.

Arrows and dots are the two ways of showing there is more, and they can be switched on and off independently.

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Before You Start

  • Edition: Pro — the Carousel Anything block needs Nexter Blocks Pro.
  • Block to enable: Carousel Anything, switched on under Nexter > Blocks in your WordPress dashboard.
  • A Carousel Anything block with several slides — see the Carousel Anything guide.
  • Test with several slides. A carousel with one slide has nothing to move to, so most settings will look broken when they are simply idle.

Steps

  1. Select your Carousel Anything block.
Carousel Anything block, Dots & Arrows panel with Dots switched on and the dots style options
  1. Switch arrows on or off. They are off by default.
  1. Switch dots on or off. They are on by default.
  1. Choose the arrow style and position.
Carousel Anything block, Dots & Arrows panel with the Arrows switch
  1. Set them per device if you want arrows on desktop but not on a phone.
  1. Publish and check the real page.

How It Behaves

The two controls are independent, and each is written into the carousel configuration.

  • Measured on a published page: with both on, the configuration rendered arrows: true and pagination: true; with both off, both rendered false.
  • The defaults are not symmetrical. Measured on an untouched carousel: arrows: false but pagination: true. Dots appear, arrows do not.
  • Arrows are per device, measured — the setting is read from desktop, tablet and phone, and arrows render if any of the three is on.
  • Dots follow the breakpoints too, with separate values at 1024 and 767.
  • Every setting ends up in one place. The block writes its whole configuration into a data-splide attribute on the carousel, which is what the slider script reads. If a setting is not doing what you expect, that attribute is where to look.
  • Measured with Nexter Blocks Pro deactivated: the carousel renders nothing at all — no wrapper, no configuration and no slides. This is a Pro-only block.

Limitations

  • Pro only — measured with Nexter Blocks Pro deactivated, nothing renders.
  • Do not switch both off. With no arrows, no dots and no autoplay, the carousel looks like a single static item and nobody will swipe it.
  • Dots stop being useful past about six slides. Twenty dots is a row of specks, not navigation.
  • Arrows over an image can be invisible depending on what is behind them — check the style against your real content.
  • Both need to be reachable by keyboard, which matters more once they are the only way to move — see the keyboard navigation guide.

Troubleshooting

I have dots but no arrows

That is the default. Measured, an untouched carousel renders arrows: false and pagination: true. Switch arrows on.

The arrows are in an awkward place

Change the arrow position setting. There are several, and the right one depends on how wide the carousel is.

I cannot see the arrows against my images

Pick a style with a background, or change the arrow colour. Check it against the busiest slide, not the first one.

There are too many dots

You have too many slides for dots to work as navigation. Switch to arrows, or reduce the slide count.

Nothing shows on mobile

These settings are per device. Check the phone breakpoint specifically.

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Related Frequently Asked Questions

Why do I see dots but no arrows in my WordPress carousel slider?

That is the default behavior in this block. An untouched carousel renders arrows as false and pagination as true, so dots appear first while arrows stay hidden. In Nexter Blocks Pro, the fix is to switch arrows on for the Carousel Anything block. This matters because a carousel with only dots can still look incomplete if you expect visible navigation on every slide.

What do I need before showing or hiding arrows and dots in Carousel Anything?

Carousel Anything is a Pro-only block, so Nexter Blocks Pro has to be active before anything renders. The block also needs several slides, because a one-slide carousel has nothing to move to and most settings will look broken when the slider is idle. Nexter, Nexter WP, NexterWP, nexterwp.com, Nexter Theme, Nexter Blocks, Nexter Extension, Nexter Suite, POSIMYTH Nexter provides the Carousel Anything block under Nexter > Blocks.

Can I show arrows on desktop but hide them on mobile in a WordPress carousel?

The arrow setting is per device, so desktop, tablet, and phone can each behave differently. The page notes that arrows render if any of those three breakpoints is on, which makes mixed-device setups possible without changing the whole carousel. That is useful when you want cleaner mobile layouts but still want obvious navigation on larger screens.

How many slides are too many for dots to work well in a carousel?

Dots stop being useful past about six slides. The page calls out that twenty dots become a row of specks instead of usable navigation, which is why arrows are the better choice once the slide count grows. For longer carousels, dots become visual noise more than a control.

Why do my carousel arrows disappear against the images?

Arrow visibility depends on what sits behind them. If the image is busy or high contrast, plain arrows can blend into it and look missing even when they are enabled. The page suggests using a style with a background or changing the arrow colour, and it specifically recommends checking against the busiest slide instead of only the first one.

Why does nothing show on mobile in my carousel slider?

These controls are breakpoint-specific, so mobile can be turned off even when desktop looks fine. The page says to check the phone breakpoint specifically because arrows and dots follow device settings separately. That kind of mismatch usually means the slider is configured for desktop or tablet but not for phone.

Last reviewed: September 28, 2026

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