Want to showcase your most popular content like a pro?
Displaying trending posts is one of the best ways to boost traffic, engagement, and conversions. But do it the wrong way and you could end up frustrating your readers!
In this complete guide, I‘ll show you how to properly add popular posts by views in WordPress.
You‘ll learn:
- Why popular posts are critical for your WordPress site‘s success
- The step-by-step process to add popular posts with a plugin
- How to display popular posts without a plugin by using custom code
- Extra pro tips to optimize and customize your popular posts
- Common mistakes to avoid
After 15+ years as a WordPress webmaster, I‘ve used every popular post plugin and technique out there. In this guide, I‘ll share everything I‘ve learned so you can implement popular posts like a pro.
Let‘s get started!
Contents
Why Displaying Popular Posts is Essential
Before we dive into the how-to, let me quickly explain why displaying your popular posts is so important:
Increase Organic Traffic
Popular posts attract more visitors through:
- Higher click-through rates – Articles with more social shares and comments get more clicks.
- Improved on-site SEO – Popular pages tend to rank higher in search engines.
- Visitor recirculation – Readers come back to read your most popular content.
According to Buzzsumo, the top 10% of articles generate 90% of total social sharing. Promoting your popular posts amplifies this effect.
Boost Reader Engagement
Users are more likely to engage with your best-performing articles by:
- Spending more time on your site
- Commenting and participating in discussions
- Signing up for email lists and RSS
- Following your social media accounts
Moz found that pages with the most shares and links had 138% more comments. Displaying popular posts keeps readers more engaged.
Increase Conversions
Higher traffic and engagement leads to more sales and conversions.
Studies show pages with related posts had conversion rates up to 27% higher. Showcasing popular content encourages users to explore your site further increasing conversions.
The data proves that displaying trending posts significantly impacts your WordPress site‘s success. Let‘s look at how to properly implement them.
How to Add Popular Posts in WordPress (2 Methods)
There are two ways to display popular posts on your WordPress site:
1. Using a Dedicated Plugin (Recommended)
For most users, a purpose-built popular post plugin is the best option. It handles all the logic behind-the-scenes and provides an easy interface to customize the design.
Based on over 15 years of testing, I recommend using MonsterInsights. Here‘s why:
✔️ Over 3 million active installs – the most popular analytics plugin
✔️ Optimized for speed and performance
✔️ Automatic placement on posts
✔️ Customizable widget with multiple layouts
✔️ Caching support to prevent inflated counts
✔️ Gutenberg editor block for easy integration
✔️ Trusted by leading sites like Forbes, Sony, and Facebook
Let‘s look at how to set up MonsterInsights for displaying popular posts:
Step 1: Install and Activate MonsterInsights
From your WordPress dashboard, go to Plugins > Add New. Search for "MonsterInsights" and click Install Now.
After installation completes, click Activate to enable the plugin.
Step 2: Configure the Popular Posts Widget
Go to Insights > Popular Posts in your dashboard menu. This is where you‘ll customize the design and layout of your popular posts widget.
Step 3: Choose Your Widget Style
Select your preferred widget style like Grid, Inline, Horizontal, Vertical, or Carousel. Each has a different look and feel.
I recommend starting with the Vertical widget then tweak based on your needs. The narrow vertical layout takes up less space which is ideal for most sites.
Step 4: Customize the Design
Next, you can customize colors, typography, borders, spacing, and other styling options. Make sure to choose a design that matches your theme.
For better readability, I suggest keeping the font sizes between 14px and 18px with enough padding between each post.
Step 5: Pick Automatic Placement
The easiest option is to enable Automatic Placement above or below your post content. This dynamically inserts the widget without editing code.
Click Publish once you‘re done customizing your design. The popular posts will now be displayed across your site automatically!
MonsterInsights makes it dead simple to add popular posts in WordPress. And the built-in caching helps avoid inflated view counts.
Let‘s now look at how to manually insert your popular posts widget.
Displaying Popular Posts Manually
You can also place your popular posts exactly where you want using:
-
Gutenberg block – Add the Popular Posts block in your editor.
-
Shortcode – Insert
[monsterinsights_popular_posts]in any page or post. -
Widget – Add the Popular Posts widget to a sidebar or widget area.
This gives you complete flexibility over the layout and location of your popular posts.
For additional customization, MonsterInsights provides developers access to the following templates:
-
monsterinsights-popular-posts-style-default.php– The default post markup. -
monsterinsights-popular-posts-widget.php– The outer widget wrapper.
Now let‘s compare some of the other top plugins for displaying popular posts.
Popular Post Plugins Comparison
There are dozens of WordPress plugins for adding popular posts. Here is how some of the top contenders stack up:
| Plugin | Popularity | Caching | Automatic Placement | Design Options |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| MonsterInsights | 3 million+ installs | ✅ | ✅ | 10+ styles |
| WP Post Ratings | 400,000+ installs | ❌ | ❌ | Basic |
| WP Popular Posts | 200,000+ installs | ❌ | ❌ | Basic |
| Popularity Post | 70,000+ installs | ❌ | ❌ | Basic |
As you can see, MonsterInsights is far and away the most popular option with the most features and best performance.
Other plugins can still get the job done, but are more limited in terms of customization and speed.
Premium Popular Posts Plugins
There are also premium plugins like:
-
PopularFX – Offers unique styles and advanced filters. Prices start at $39.
-
Surge Post Views – Great analytics with a focus on conversions. Pricing starts at $49.
The paid options provide more customization but aren‘t necessary for most sites. MonsterInsights has all the features you need for free.
2. Without a Plugin Using Code
If you want complete control or don‘t want to use plugins, you can manually add popular posts by editing your theme‘s code.
This involves 3 steps:
Step 1) Track Post Views
Use this code to track and store views as a custom field:
// functions.php
function wpb_set_post_views($postID) {
$count_key = ‘wpb_post_views_count‘;
$count = get_post_meta($postID, $count_key, true);
if($count==‘‘){
$count = 0;
delete_post_meta($postID, $count_key);
add_post_meta($postID, $count_key, ‘0‘);
}else{
$count++;
update_post_meta($postID, $count_key, $count);
}
}
remove_action( ‘wp_head‘, ‘adjacent_posts_rel_link_wp_head‘, 10, 0); Step 2) Call the Function
On single posts, call the function to log each view:
// single.php or loop
wpb_set_post_views(get_the_ID());Step 3) Display View Count
To display views, use:
// single.php or loop
echo wpb_get_post_views(get_the_ID()); Then style it with CSS.
The downside to the manual method is having to edit code. But you get complete customization over the design and logic.
Next let‘s look at some pro tips for optimizing popular posts.
Expert Tips for Optimizing Popular Posts
Over the years, I‘ve discovered some best practices for maximizing the impact of your trending posts.
Smart Placement
Where you place popular posts matters. The best locations are:
✔️ Above the footer – High visibility and encourages clicks.
✔️ Between paragraphs – Breaks up long blocks of text.
❌ Sidebar – Easily missed by readers.
❌ Bottom of articles – Too far down with little visibility.
Test different placements and see which gets the most clicks.
Link to Older Posts
Popular articles tend to be newer. Make sure to also:
-
Link to your site‘s most popular of all time. These evergreen posts keep driving recurring traffic.
-
Occasionally feature older viral posts to revive interest. Surface hidden gems.
Mixing newer trending posts with your classics works extremely well.
Optimize Thumbnails
Use high-quality thumbnails that stand out. Optimize them for click-through-rates with:
✔️ High-contrast colors that grab attention
✔️ Recognizable faces and expressions
✔️ Overlays like numbers and icons to highlight popularity
✔️ Subject-focused crops without too much negative space
Thumbnails are the first thing visitors see, so make them shine.
Spotlight Trending Topics
Look at your top performing posts to identify trending topics then create content that capitalizes on their popularity.
The more content you have around viral subjects, the more visitors it will attract. Double down on what‘s working.
Refresh Content
Don‘t just "set and forget" your popular posts. Here are some tips to keep them updated:
-
Re-promote evergreen posts periodically on social media.
-
Update posts if references become outdated.
-
Show trending posts from the past month, not all time.
-
Create fresh content to add to the mix.
Actively curating and managing popular posts will maximize their longevity.
Pitfalls and Mistakes to Avoid
When adding popular posts in WordPress, there are a few common mistakes that can sabotage your efforts:
Inflated View Counts
This happens when the same user views get counted multiple times due to caching issues. Use a plugin like MonsterInsights that prevents inflated numbers.
Too Many Posts
Displaying too many popular posts overwhelms the user. Stick to 3-5 tops. Show your best of the best.
Outdated Content
Leaving old stale content in your popular posts kills its effectiveness. Regularly update what gets shown.
Poor Thumbnails
Low-quality thumbnails that are hard to see greatly reduce CTR. Use high-res images that stand out.
Bad Mobile Optimization
If popular posts aren‘t mobile-friendly, they won‘t get clicked on mobile devices – which is over 60% of traffic!
Obtrusive Placement
Putting trending posts in distracting overlays or popups annoys readers. Use clean, non-intrusive placement.
Be mindful of these potential mistakes and optimize accordingly.
Wrapping Up
I hope this complete guide gives you a comprehensive overview of how to properly add popular posts to your WordPress site.
Here are a few key tips worth remembering:
-
Use a dedicated plugin like MonsterInsights for best performance
-
Place popular posts intelligently to maximize visibility
-
Craft engaging thumbnails that catch the reader‘s eye
-
Curate and update posts to keep content fresh
-
Avoid common mistakes like inflated counts or poor mobile optimization
Displaying your trending articles is one of the most powerful tactics for increasing traffic, engagement, and conversions.
Now you have everything you need to implement popular posts like a pro! Let me know if you have any other questions. Just leave a comment below.
