How to control the Attribution gadget when using the Template Designer

If you are using one of Blogger's new templates, you'll notice an "Attribution" widget which appears at the very bottom of your site. This will contain details of the template designer, a "Powered by Blogger" statement, and possibly attribution for any background images you've added through the Template Designer.

We can add copyright information to this gadget by editing through the Layout page in our dashboard, but by default are unable to change it's position or remove it.

For various reasons, you may want to remove this gadget from your Blogger layout. For example, if you have highly customized your template so it looks nothing like the original design on which it is based, or you would prefer visitors not to know that your site is operated using Blogger's free service.

Since removing the Attribution gadget is not a straightforward customization, I have developed a simple method we can use to remove this gadget and (if you choose) replace it with a gadget of your choosing.


Before making any changes to your blog's HTML code, it is good practise to make a backup of your template! I've written a tutorial explaining how to backup and restore your template which you may like to read before proceeding further.

Step 1: Edit your Template HTML

Go to Template>Edit HTML in your Blogger dashboard and search for the following section of code:

 <!-- outside of the include in order to lock Attribution widget -->
 <b:section class='foot' id='footer-3' showaddelement='no'>
<b:widget id='Attribution1' locked='true' title='' type='Attribution'/>
</b:section>

Pay attention to the sections highlighted in bold red and change this section so it appears like the code below:

<!-- outside of the include in order to lock Attribution widget -->
<b:section class='foot' id='footer-3' showaddelement='yes'>
<b:widget id='Attribution1' locked='false' title='' type='Attribution'/>
</b:section>

Now save the changes you have made.

Step 2: Remove the Attribution gadget (and add an alternative if you like!)

Go to the Layout section of your dashboard and scroll down to the Attribution widget at the bottom.

Click the Edit link, and you should now see there is the option to remove the gadget (which previously did not appear).

You'll also notice that you can Add a Gadget to this section of the footer, and are able to add any gadget of your choice in this section of your site.

Is it okay to remove the attribution gadget?

I have found no mention in Blogger's terms and conditions concerning removal of the Attribution gadget from our Blogger templates.

However, it seems only fair to provide credit where it's due. You may instead want to provide attribution on an internal page to template authors/background image artists. This way you retain control over where and how such attribution is displayed.

Did you find this post useful?

I hope you find this method useful for customizing your own Blogger templates. Please feel free to leave your comments and suggestions below.

Icon credit: Samo Drole