[5.4.x] Category layout can't be used in templates

[dsic-se-support-web]

What happened?

1. Global context is Joomla 5.4.3 using Cassiopeia standard template installed from scratch
2. System > Global configuration > Articles | Category tab => Set Choose a Layout = "Blog"
3. Content > Categories => Create 2 categories like :

[Main category]
|- [sub category 1] => In "Option" tab, set Layout = "Use Global"

Or

[Main category]
|- [sub category 1] => In "Option" tab, set Layout = "Blog"

4. Content > Articles => Create 1 article and publish it in [Main category]
5. Menu > Main menu => Create a menu like:

[Menu 1]
- Main tab settings => Menu Item Type = "Category blog", chosen category is [Main category], Parent Item = "No parent"
- Category tab settings => Subcategory Levels = "Use Global (1)" or any other value except "None"; Empty Categories = "Show"

6. Go to front page and to [Menu 1] :

• Article published in [Main category] is display in blog type layout => That's OK
• Sub category [sub category 1] is displayed in list type layout => That's wrong !

Version

5.4

Expected result

Sub category [sub category 1] should be displayed in a blog type layout

Actual result

Sub category [sub category 1] is displayed in a list type layout regardless of the layout chosen in the category options and/or in System > Global configuration > Articles | Category tab => "Choose a Layout"

System Information

No response

Additional Comments

We tried to create overrides of files in ‎/templates/cassiopeia/html/com_content/category/ with no suucess. It seems that "category_layout" var can't be used.

[drmenzelit]

I can't reproduce.

[brianteeman]

Do you already have a menu item that points to sub category 1
Have you switched to the Cassiopeia template to rule out an error with your template

[chmst]

We tried to create overrides of files in ‎/templates/cassiopeia/html/com_content/category/ with no suucess. It seems that "category_layout" var can't be used.

Did you want to make an aternative layout?

[dsic-se-support-web]

Do you already have a menu item that points to sub category 1 Have you switched to the Cassiopeia template to rule out an error with your template

As described, I reproduce this with a fresh new Joomla 5.4.3 installation with no other template than Cassiopeia.

[dsic-se-support-web]

We tried to create overrides of files in ‎/templates/cassiopeia/html/com_content/category/ with no suucess. It seems that "category_layout" var can't be used.

Did you want to make an aternative layout?

Not at this time. Juste noticed this with the standard Cassiopeia template.

[jiteshkhatri11]

Hi, I’ve reproduced this issue on Joomla 5.4.x using the Cassiopeia template.
Subcategories in "Category Blog" view are always rendered using list layout, even when "Blog" layout is selected globally or in category options.

I’d like to work on fixing this issue. Could you please confirm if this is expected behavior or if a fix would be welcome?

Thanks!

[pratibha-builds]

Hi, I've been trying to fix the bug but the problem arise here is that
Subcategories in blog view do not receive article data and are rendered using children templates. Attempting to force blog layout at template level leads to rendering issues, indicating the need for a model-level fix.

[drmenzelit]

@jiteshkhatri11 can you explain what you did to reproduce the issue? Some screenshots of the settings (categories, menu item, etc.) could be helpful.
@pratibha-builds were you able to reproduce the issue?

As someone regularly using category blog on websites, I'm still unable to reproduce the issue.

[jiteshkhatri11]

Hi @drmenzelit, thanks for your response!

I’ve reproduced the issue on a fresh Joomla 5.4.x installation using the Cassiopeia template. Here are the exact steps:

1. Set Global Configuration → Articles → Category → Choose Layout = Blog

2. Create:

   • Main Category
   • Sub Category 1 (child of Main Category, Layout = Use Global / Blog)

3. Create an article in Main Category

4. Create a menu item:

   • Type: Category Blog
   • Category: Main Category
   • Subcategory Levels: 1
   • Empty Categories: Show

5. Open frontend and view the menu item

Result:

• Main category → Blog layout ✅
• Subcategory → List layout ❌

Expected:

• Subcategory should also use Blog layout

This seems to happen because subcategories are rendered using children templates instead of inheriting the blog layout, possibly requiring a model-level fix.

I’ll attach screenshots below for clarity.

Thanks!

[drmenzelit]

This seems to happen because subcategories are rendered using children templates

If you mean blog_children.php or default_children.php, they only render the subcategories below the blog / list layout.
Maybe it is a misunderstanding, if you are talking about this list:

that is the expected layout. When you click on on subcategory, the articles will be displayed as blog layout.

[jiteshkhatri11]

Hi @drmenzelit, thanks for the clarification!

I understand now that the subcategories displayed below the main category are expected to appear as a list, and the blog layout is applied only when navigating into the subcategory.

It seems I misunderstood the expected behavior initially. Thanks for explaining this!

I’ll explore other issues to contribute to. Appreciate your guidance.

[drmenzelit]

@dsic-se-support-web can you please check my comment above?

[dsic-se-support-web]

Hi !

Well... It would seems that I too misunderstood the behavior. So, if I understand correctly, the sub-categories displayed in a blog view of articles are only shown in list layout and never in blog layout ?

Perhaps i'm wrong and don't understand the concept of this but this behavior stays a bit confusing and illogical to me.

If I change the layout in the "Options" tab of a Category, the logical result, in my opinion, should apply to the category layout.

The same flawed understanding of logical behavior is found on System > Global Configuration > Articles | Category tab. Since these are Categories options, the "Choose a Layout" option should logically affect the layout of categories.

To set the articles layout published in a category, the logical and used way is to use a blog or list view from a menu layout.

Maybe we could consider this as an evolution rather than a bug?

[pratibha-builds]

Hi @dsic-se-support-web,

Yes, your understanding is correct.

In Joomla’s current behavior, subcategories displayed within a Category Blog view are always rendered as a list (via children templates), while the selected layout (Blog/List) is applied only when viewing that category directly.

So:

• Category layout settings → apply when the category itself is opened
• Subcategories in a parent blog view → act as navigation links, not full article layouts

I agree this can feel confusing, since the "Choose a Layout" option in Global Configuration and Category Options suggests it might affect category display more broadly.

Given this, it may be better to consider this as a feature request or UX improvement rather than a bug. For example:

• Allow subcategories to optionally render in blog layout
• Or improve clarity in documentation/UI

Thanks for raising this — it’s a valuable observation.

[dsic-se-support-web]

Hi @pratibha-builds ,

Sorry for the late reply.

Could you (or someone else) reclassify this issue as a feature request rather than a bug ? Indeed, all usefull information on this subject can be found here.

Otherwise, i'll open a new feature resquest with a link to this issue before closing it.

[drmenzelit]

@dsic-se-support-web I converted the issue to a discussion, where we now collect the feature requests (#46934).

[dsic-se-support-web]

Thank you very much 👍

[drmenzelit]

The Joomla Maintainer Team decided at the 17.06.2026 meeting to accept this feature.
The category blog layout needs a new concept.