You don’t have to know a markup language such as HTML to create complex content on your digital platform. 

Users and editors without coding experience can easily craft and update web content using a rich text editor – also called WYSIWYG. It’s pronounced wizz-ee-wig, and stands for What You See Is What You Get. 

CKEditor 5 is the default WYSIWYG editor in Drupal 10, having been initially introduced in Drupal 9.3. Its powerful features make it far more than a mere update of CKEditor 4. In fact, CKEditor 5 was written completely from scratch to overhaul the content editing experience. 

Let’s take a look at what you can expect from CKEditor 5 in Drupal and how to make the most of its core and premium features. 

CKEditor 5 in Drupal Core: A Smoother User Experience 
Better User Interface

CKEditor’s user interface has undergone a serious makeover. It’s been greatly simplified and modernized with UI improvements to icons, toolbar items mechanics, interface colors, and the theme. 
 

Three examples of UI display options. From left to right: Classic offers a fixed toolbar for distraction-free editing; Balloon comes with a floating toolbar so you can edit content in its real location; Inline displays the toolbar only when the editor is focused. Credit: CKEditor.

Balloon Panels

It used to be that adjusting embedded media and tables would bring up a dialog window that covered the content you wanted to format. These windows have been replaced with balloon panels that are much more intuitive, accessible, and mobile-friendly. 

Quick and Easy Tables

Creating and editing tables in CKEditor 4 was often a painstaking process. Content editors will be relieved to hear it’s a breeze in the newest version. You can insert, style, and adjust tables with just a few clicks. It’s also easy to copy and paste rows and columns. 

The tables toolbar offers an efficient editing experience. Credit: CKEditor.

Reworked Style Drop-Drown

The style drop-down has been improved so that you can now see how each style will look before applying it. 

Site admins can configure the styles available through CKEditor 5 in Drupal 10. Credit: CKEditor.

Improved Lists Feature

CKEditor 5 is more stable when it comes to creating complex lists. The improvements were based on a review of hundreds of scenarios relating to nested list items, including those with multiple blocks. 

CKEditor 5 Premium Features: A Catalyst for Collaboration

Adding the CKEditor 5 premium features module to Drupal 10 lets you use state-of-the-art solutions for collaborating and exporting content. It provides a Google Docs-like editing experience that gives you more control over your content and streamlines your editing processes. 

Track Changes 

When track changes mode is turned on, all your edits will be displayed as suggestions that can be accepted, discarded or commented on.

Revision History 

The sophisticated revision history feature allows you to see any changes made and who made them without having to leave the editor. You can also compare several revisions at once and restore previous versions.

Comments

You can now add comments to text and block elements such as images. Your team members can have discussions in threads and remove the comments when they’re done.

Check out the CKEditor 5 collaboration features demo. Credit: Drupal.

Real-Time Collaboration

Multiple authors can now work simultaneously on the same rich text content. You can see at a glance which users are actively editing at any time. 

Notifications

You can now keep track of content changes by setting up notifications by email or writing a custom mechanism to get notifications via Slack. 

Export to Word and PDF

With the click of a button, you can create a PDF or Word Document from content you’ve crafted in CKEditor 5. There is also a pagination feature that lets you see how your document will be laid out for printing. 

CKEditor 5 lets you easily convert rich text content into a PDF. Credit: CKEditor.

MathType

MathType is now integrated with CKEditor 5. This feature allows you to display math equations and chemical formulas on your web pages. You can create keyboard shortcuts and save frequently-used equations and symbols. This could be a particularly useful tool for educational institutions.

The MathType integration lets you create various formulas in CKEditor 5. Credit: CKEditor. 

 
Upcoming Features: What to Expect Next 

Here are some exciting features that are soon to be integrated into Drupal 10 or in your Drupal version of CKEditor 5. 

Autoformatting

This allows you to edit content without having to click any toolbar buttons. Once it’s integrated into Drupal 10, you’ll be able to quickly create lists or format text simply by typing shortcuts. 

Try the autoformatting demo. Credit: Drupal.

Transformations

You’ll soon be able to automatically create symbols with shortcut text, such as a copyright sign by typing (C). The transformations features can also be a great tool for introducing auto-correct rules.

TypeScript

Developers are currently limited to JavaScript if they want to write a plug-in for CKEditor. But CKEditor will soon deliver official TypeScript for the entire API.

Get Expert-Led Experience With Drupal 10

Want more know-how? Master the fundamentals with our Drupal for Content Editors Training. You'll come away with actionable knowledge to implement improvements to your content processes, accessibility, consistency, and value.

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