Want to keep visitors glued to your website? The right WordPress related posts plugin can be just what you need to turn the tables!
The easiest way to keep visitors longer and even more engaged with your website is by showing them similar content. Particularly, the one that aligns with what they are already reading.
This will, in turn, keep them interested, prompting them to explore your site even further.
And this is precisely where WordPress related posts plugins come into play. But, with so many options available, choosing one from many can be an uphill task.
Yet, don’t worry! In this article, we’ll introduce you to some of the best WordPress related posts plugins out there.
Let’s go!
What Features to Look For in WordPress Related Posts Plugins?
Do you have any idea what features should you be looking for in the WordPress-related posts plugin? No worries, here is what you should actually consider.
- Customization Options: Ensure your plugin has customization options to craft attractive related post sections.
- Accurate Post Matching: Ensure that the plugin uses smart algorithms to accurately match related content. This helps to lower bounce rates and keep visitors engaged.
- Performance Optimization: The related posts plugin can be a little heavy + slows down your site. Thus, ensure it’s optimized for performance and loads super smoothly.
- Mobile Responsiveness: Since people are moving more towards mobile devices, make sure your chosen plugin is mobile responsive. So, your related posts look equally good on all devices.
- Support for Different Post Types: Does your site use various post types like custom posts, pages, or even products? Then, find a plugin that has complete multiple post types support.
Other than these features, you need to check if the plugin is user-friendly, regularly updated, and offers good support. Also, consider the pricing to ensure it fits within your budget.
Having said that, let’s explore the best WordPress related posts plugins for 2024. Let’s go!
7 Best Related Posts Plugins for WordPress 2024
Here, we’ve enlisted some of the best WordPress related posts plugins out there along with its description, key features, pricing, and more. Be sure to go through them all so you can make the best deal.
1. YARPP – Yet Another Related Posts Plugin
With over 100,000 active installations, Yet Another Related Posts Plugin, also known as YARPP, is one of the most famous related posts plugins. Basically, it uses a powerful algorithm that considers post titles, content, tags, and categories. So, your users see the most relevant posts on display.
What’s more, this plugin is super flexible. Meaning, that you can customize how your related posts are displayed. Whether, it’s as simple lists, thumbnails, or even custom templates. As a result, this makes it suitable for a range of website styles and themes.
Just to let you know, we also use Yet Another Related Posts Plugin on our website SiteSaga to show the related posts.
Key Features:
- You can easily display related posts for any custom post type, not just standard blog posts.
- It evaluates post titles, content, tags, and categories, to showcase highly relevant related posts.
- Includes a caching mechanism so that your related posts are displayed quickly.
- It’s a translation-ready plugin. This means it’s perfect for multilingual websites that cater to a global audience.
- Supports bbPress, WooCommerce, WordPress multisite, and so much more. This makes it develop-friendly.
- The YARPP team consistently improves and updates it so you always get the best of it.
How to Use the Plugin to Show Related Posts?
Just follow the below steps to use the YARPP plugin on your WordPress site for related posts.
Like any other free plugin, you can install the YARPP by navigating to the Plugins > Add New option in your WordPress dashboard.
For detailed instructions, you can check our article on how to install a WordPress plugin.
Shortly after the plugin is activated, go to ‘Settings > YARPP’ to access its several settings.
Here, you’ll find settings under several sections like ‘The Pool’, ‘The Algorithm’, ‘Automatic Display Options’ and so much more. You can configure these settings one by one as per your choices of related posts.
Further, you can have a glimpse of a preview outline of how your related posts are going to appear.
On scrolling a bit down, you’ll find more settings for RSS Feed options, and Rest API options that you can configure to your choice. Also, you can click on the button ‘Empty cache’ for caching purposes.
Once all is done, hit the ‘Save Changes’ button. Now, if you go and check your posts, then you’ll see the related posts section right there. Pretty amazing, right?
Pricing:
As of now, you may have already guessed that YARPP is a 100% free plugin. All you’ve to do is install and use it right from the comfort of your dashboard easily.
2. PostX
PostX is another dynamic and feature-rich plugin that goes beyond just displaying related posts. It’s particularly famous among bloggers, news websites, and online magazines due to its flexibility and customization options.
Primarily, this plugin is designed for those who want to enhance their WordPress site with visually appealing post grids and lists. However, it also includes a powerful related posts feature.
On top of that, its related post feature is deeply integrated into its post-building blocks. So, you can display related content in several layouts from grids and lists to sliders.
Key Features:
- Built with Gutenberg in mind. As a result, this makes it super easy to use for those who are familiar with WordPress block editor.
- It offers a live preview feature. So, you can see exactly how your related posts will appear on your site as you customize it.
- Has a query builder (pro version). With that, you can fine-tune which posts are considered related on several criteria like categories, tags, post types, etc.
- You can choose from the pre-designed templates so you can create professional-looking related post sections quickly.
How to Use the Plugin to Show Related Posts?
To let you know, you require a premium version of the PostX plugin to access the Advanced Query Builder feature. Using this you can add related posts.
Here, we’ve already purchased the premium version from the PostX official website.
Now, follow the below steps as we guide you through how to use PostX to display related posts on your WordPress site.
To use the PostX premium version, first, you need to install its free version.
Installing the PostX plugin is super easy!
You can follow the steps in this guide on how to install a WordPress plugin. It covers everything you need, including how to upload and activate the premium version.
So, once you’ve activated the PostX premium plugin, you’re directly taken to the ‘License’ page.
Here, paste the license key and click on the ‘Activate License’ option.
Now, you need to go to the post where you want to add the ‘Related Posts’ section.
There, click on the ‘+’ plus icon and type in ‘PostX’ in the search bar. With that, you’ll explore several post-list types. Simply, choose the one that you like.
Afterward, you’ll see the embed of several post lists. Now, all you’ve to do is hover on the post lists block and click on the ‘Filter’ icon as shown below.
Here, you need to ‘Enable Advanced Filter’ option. Next, you’ll have options to sort your post through several tags and categories.
Following that, click on the ‘Advanced Query’ icon as shown below.
From here, you can configure post types, quick query to show the related posts, number of posts, and so forth.
Further, you can click on the ‘Grid Spacing’ icon to configure columns and row gaps to modify how you want your related posts to look.
Once done, hit the ‘Save’ button on the top right corner of your post editor panel.
Now, you can go and preview your post to see how your related posts exactly look on your blog.
Pricing:
PostX is a freemium plugin. You can get a free version with basic features available right from the WordPress.org repository.
Meanwhile, for advanced features like Advanced Query Builder which offers related posts features, you need a premium version. It’s available to you at the following pricing schemes:
- 1 Site License: $36 per year or $119 as a one-time fee.
- 5 Site Licenses: $79 per year or $199 as a one-time fee.
- Unlimited Sites Licenses: $107 per year or $249 as a one-time fee.
All the above plans include all starter site templates, site builder, all pro add-ons and features, with premium updates and support.
Want to know more about this plugin? Then, be sure to go through our comprehensive review article on PostX review.
3. Contextual Related Posts
Next, we’ve got the Contextual Related Posts plugin to our list of the best related posts plugins for WordPress. It’s a powerful and highly customizable plugin with which you can display contextually relevant related posts on your website.
What sets this plugin apart is its emphasis on content relevance. This means it uses the context of the current post to determine which other posts should be shown as related.
For this, it uses a powerful algorithm that focuses on both the content and the title of posts to deliver highly relevant related posts. As a result, this improves user engagement and reduces bounce rates.
Key Features:
- You can choose to automatically display related posts at the end of your content. Or, use shortcodes to place them where you want.
- Offers a block called ‘Related Posts (CRP)’ with its own set of customization settings to place it to your desired post and pages.
- Provides you the option to exclude posts from particular categories or tags so that it’s not displayed in a related posts list.
- Includes a caching system to ensure your related posts are displayed quickly, even on high-trafficked sites.
- Comes with several filters and actions that make it developer-friendly. As a result, you can add features, modify outputs, and do so much more.
How to Use the Plugin to Show Related Posts?
Wondering how to use this plugin to show related posts? Well, it’s incredibly easy! Just follow as we guide you through!
Like any other plugin, you can quickly install the plugin right from your dashboard.
So, once your plugin is activated, you’ll be directly taken to the ‘Contextual Related Post Settings’ page. Nevertheless, you can always come back to it via ‘Settings > Related Posts’.
To let you know, the best part of this plugin is right after its activation, the related posts section is automatically added. You can have a quick check of your post to see the changes.
Yet, you can come back to the dashboard to further customize it the way you want.
On its Settings page, you’ll find several configuration options under several tabs like ‘General’, ‘List Tuning’, ‘Output’, ‘Thumbnail’, ‘Styles’, and ‘Feed’.
You can customize each setting one by one as per your preferences.
Also, you can set the thumbnail as per your preferences to your related posts.
Once done, don’t forget to click on the ‘Save Changes’ option at the bottom.
And preview your concerned page and posts to see the related posts section exactly how you wanted it to be!
Pretty cool, right?
Pricing:
Contextual Related Posts is a freemium plugin. Meaning, you can directly install the free version right from your WordPress dashboard and it should suffice.
However, if you want more advanced features, then you can consider upgrading to the premium version. It’s available at the following price costs:
- Pro: $49/year. All free features plus direct email support, advanced Gutenberg block, advanced algorithm, extra shortcode settings, and more.
- Pro Multi: $99-$199/year. All Pro features plus discounted pricing for 5 to 25 sites.
- Pro Agency: $299/year. All Pro Multi features for unlimited sites along with priority email support.
4. Inline Related Posts
Do you want to capture your reader’s attention at critical points in your content? Well, the Inline Related Posts plugin lets you do exactly that.
As the name suggests, the Inline Related Posts plugin is an innovative tool that you can use to strategically place related posts within the content of your articles. So, your visitors stay longer on your site and explore more of your content.
More precisely, this plugin inserts related post suggestions directly within the text, where readers are most engaged. As a result, this increases the likelihood that the visitors will click on the related content and boost the overall page views.
Key Features:
- Automatically detects optimal points within your content to insert related post boxes.
- You can choose from over 20 combinations of themes, colors, and hover effects to match the look and feel of your site.
- It’s designed with efficiency in mind. Therefore, it operates without slowing down your site.
- You can use this plugin alongside other related post plugins. As a result, you get the flexibility to enhance your content strategy hassle-free.
- Comes with a preview feature to see how the related posts will appear in your content.
Pricing:
Guess what? It’s an absolutely free plugin that you can quickly install and use right from your WordPress dashboard.
5. Jetpack Related Posts
Jetpack Related Posts is a feature of the powerful Jetpack plugin by Automattic, the same team behind WordPress.com.
What makes Jetpack Related Posts stand out is its seamless integration with the broader Jetpack which includes several design tools and integrations. As a result, you get a reliable and efficient solution for displaying related content without the need for additional plugins.
What’s more, it also provides an automatic feature that analyzes your content and generates related posts based on tags, categories, and content.
Key Features:
- Super easy to use. All you’ve to do is go to the ‘Traffic’ tab and enable the related posts feature and you’re good to go.
- Choose from different display options, such as text links or thumbnail images for the related posts as per your reference.
- It’s a performance-optimized plugin that ensures that the related posts feature doesn’t impact your website’s performance.
- You can easily adjust the number of related posts to show and tweak the layout to suit your site’s design.
- As a part of the Jetpack suite, you can get access to other free features too.
Pricing:
Jetpack Related Posts is a part of the free Jetpack plugin. This means you can use it freely without any additional cost.
Want more additional features and enhanced support? Then, you can upgrade to the premium version known as Jetpack Complete starting at the cost of $9.95 per month.
6. Custom Related Posts
Custom Related Posts is another user-friendly plugin out there in the market. It’s designed to give you full control over which related posts will appear on your site.
Unlike many other automated plugins that rely on algorithms, Custom Related Posts lets you automatically select related posts. As a result, this ensures they are highly relevant to your content and audience.
This plugin is especially useful for websites that cover diverse topics or need precise content recommendations. Ultimately, this increases both the user engagement as well as SEO (Search Engine Optimization).
Key Features:
- Comes with easy-to-use interface where you can add, remove, or rearrange related posts with a few clicks.
- Supports multiple post-types, making it a versatile choice for content-heavy websites.
- Handpick which posts to display as related ensuring maximum relevance and engagement.
- Offers you with ‘Custom Related Posts’ meta box on the post edit screen where you can search and select related posts.
- Provides a shortcode so you can insert related posts anywhere on your site.
Pricing:
Custom Related Posts is a totally free plugin that you can install right from your WordPress dashboard and use for managing related content.
Last but not least, we’ve got Shareaholic on our list of the best WordPress related posts plugins.
To be precise, it’s an all-in-one content amplification platform that goes beyond just displaying related posts. You get a comprehensive set of tools including professional social sharing buttons, icons, and more.
Coming back to its related post feature, it uses sophisticated algorithms to automatically suggest relevant to your readers. What’s more, you get a user-friendly dashboard that provides insight into how related posts and social shares are contributing to your site’s overall traffic.
Key Features:
- Provides flexible placement options to display your related posts on several locations.
- You get extensive customization options for both related posts and social sharing buttons to match your site’s design and branding.
- Automatically uses keywords from popular SEO plugins like “All in One SEO” and “Yoast SEO,” to improve the relevance of related posts.
- It’s a mobile-optimized plugin. So, your related posts will look great on all devices.
- Offers you the option to manually refine the related post selection if needed.
Pricing:
Shareaholic is a free plugin. You can directly download it right away from the WordPress.org repository and use it for your related posts as well as social sharing buttons.
Are you new to website building and don’t know where to start? Then, be sure to read our comprehensive article on how to create a website for comprehensive guidance.
Conclusion
And that’s all folks! We’ve come to the end of our article on the best WordPress related posts plugins for 2024.
We hope you can use any one of these plugins to show related posts. So you can significantly enhance user engagement, increase pageviews, and tackle bounce rates.
If you’ve any questions, then feel free to ask them in the comment below. We’re happy to help you out.
Also, check out our other reads such as free WordPress membership plugins and best WordPress cookie consent plugins.
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