Draft, Private, or Scheduled? Pick the right 'not-public-yet'

Draft, Private, or Scheduled? Pick the right 'not-public-yet'

When a post isn't ready for everyone, WordPress gives you three options in the publish box, and they do different things.

— Draft: saved but invisible to visitors. Use while you're still writing.
— Private: published, but only logged-in admins and editors can see it. Use to preview the live look with a trusted teammate.
— Scheduled: set a future date and time, and it publishes itself automatically. Use to line up posts while you're away.

A bonus: every post also has a shareable 'Preview' link, handy for showing a client without publishing.

In plain words: Draft hides it, Private shows it to your team, Scheduled releases it later on its own.