W4 POST LIST – WORDPRESS PLUGIN
Display Any WordPress Content,
Beautifully.
Create stunning lists of posts, taxonomies, and users — anywhere on your WordPress site. Design your own templates, group results, add pagination, and make it yours with a simple shortcode.
Free & open source. No account required. Works with any theme.
4,000+
Active Installations
⭐ 4.7
Average Rating
93
5-Star Reviews
10+
Years on WordPress.org
One Plugin. Endless Possibilities.
W4 Post List lets you query, design, and display any WordPress data — posts, custom post types, taxonomies, users — using shortcodes with fully customizable templates.
📝
Any Content Type
Display posts, pages, custom post types, media attachments, taxonomy terms, or users. If WordPress stores it, W4 Post List can display it.
🎨
Custom Templates
Design your output with shortcode-based templates. Use HTML, built-in template tags, and your own custom shortcodes for full creative control.
🔍
Powerful Queries
Filter by taxonomy, meta fields, date, author, parent, status, and more. Combine multiple query conditions to get exactly what you need.
📂
Group Results
Organize output by year, month, category, tag, custom taxonomy, author, or parent. Perfect for archives, knowledge bases, and directories.
📄
Ajax Pagination
Built-in pagination with ajax support. Navigate through results without page reloads. Works with multiple lists on the same page without conflict.
🧩
Developer Friendly
Extend with custom shortcodes using filters. Register your own template tags, add dynamic fields, and integrate with any WordPress data.
Five List Types. One Interface.
Choose a list type, configure your query, design your template, and place the shortcode. That’s it.
📋 Posts
Query and display any post type — blog posts, pages, products, portfolios, or any custom post type registered on your site.
🏷️ Terms
List categories, tags, or any custom taxonomy terms. Show term names, descriptions, counts, and links.
👥 Users
Display site users filtered by role. Perfect for team pages, member directories, and author listings.
🏷️📋 Terms + Posts
Combine taxonomy terms with their associated posts. Ideal for category-grouped archives and knowledge bases.
👥📋 Users + Posts
List users alongside their published content. Great for contributor showcases and multi-author blogs.
Up and Running in 3 Steps
No coding required. Create your first list in under a minute.
Step 1 — Choose & Configure
Go to W4 Post List → Add New. Select your list type (Posts, Terms, Users, or combinations) and configure your query — choose post types, filter by taxonomy, meta fields, dates, authors, and more.
Step 2 — Design Your Template
Write your loop template using HTML and built-in shortcode tags like [post_title], [post_thumbnail], [post_excerpt], [post_meta], and many more. Click “View Shortcodes” to see all available template tags.
Step 3 — Place Your Shortcode
Copy the generated shortcode and paste it into any post, page, or widget area. You can also use the Gutenberg block or the TinyMCE button to insert it directly from the editor.
What Can You Build?
Here are some popular ways people use W4 Post List.
Blog Post Archives
Grouped by year/month with custom styling, pagination, and thumbnail support.
Knowledge Base
Category-grouped article listings with term descriptions and post counts.
Media Gallery
Display attachments filtered by MIME type with custom thumbnail sizes and layouts.
Team / Staff Page
User listings with avatars, bios, and role-based filtering.
Product Showcase
Custom post type listings with meta fields, featured images, and custom ordering.
Table of Contents
Linked list of child pages or related posts organized by hierarchy or taxonomy.
A Clean, Intuitive Interface
Configure your list settings, write your template, and preview the output — all from a single, straightforward admin page.
Template Tags at Your Fingertips
Use simple shortcode tags inside your template to pull any post data. Here’s a quick example:
<div class="post-card">
[post_thumbnail size="medium"]
<h3><a href="[post_permalink]">[post_title]</a></h3>
<span class="date">[post_date]</span>
<span class="category">[post_terms taxonomy="category"]</span>
<p>[post_excerpt]</p>
</div>Available tags include: post title, permalink, thumbnail, excerpt, content, date, modified date, author name, author avatar, categories, tags, custom taxonomy terms, meta values, comment count, media URLs, and more. View all template tags →
Loved by WordPress Users
With 4,000+ active installations and a 4.7-star rating, here’s what users are saying.
★★★★★
“This is the only plugin that I have found after hours of searching that does this — nothing else even came close! The ability to influence every part and position of every component of an archive post listing was quite simply revelatory.”
— hornblower
★★★★★
“I’ve been searching high and low for a Knowledge Base category list plugin for several months. This is actually really easy to use and has lots of potential. Should be renamed to suit its versatility.”
— Airtrooper
★★★★★
“Very good plugin, simple and complete. It just gets the job done.”
— brasofilo
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I display a list on my page?
Each list gets a unique ID when you create it. Use the shortcode in any post, page, or widget. You can also insert it using the Gutenberg block or the TinyMCE editor button.
How do I add pagination to my list?
Add the [nav] shortcode to your template. It supports several options: type="plain" renders simple anchor links, type="list" wraps navigation in an unordered list, and adding ajax=1 enables ajax-powered pagination that loads the next page without a full page reload. Multiple paginated lists can work on the same page without conflict.
What is the “Template” field?
The Template field is where you design the HTML structure of your list output. You can use plain HTML along with the plugin’s built-in shortcode tags. Two essential tags are [posts] (replaced by your post loop) and [nav] (replaced by pagination). Inside the loop, you can use tags like [post_title], [post_thumbnail], [post_excerpt], and many more.
How do I display posts grouped by category?
Use the “Group By” option in the list settings. If your selected post type supports categories, tags, or custom taxonomies, you’ll see them as grouping options. You’ll also need to use the group shortcode tags in your template to display group headings and content blocks.
Which template shortcodes are available?
There are dozens of built-in shortcodes covering post data (title, content, excerpt, thumbnail, date, author, meta), taxonomy data (term name, description, count, link), and user data (display name, avatar, role). When creating or editing a list, click “View Shortcodes” under the Loop Template field to see all available tags. You can also view them in the documentation.
Can I add my own custom shortcode tags?
Yes. Use the w4pl/get_shortcodes filter to register your own template tags. Each custom tag needs a name, a callback function, and optionally a group and description. Your callback receives the shortcode attributes and can return any dynamic content. See the developer documentation for examples and full details.
Ready to Build Better Lists?
W4 Post List is free, open source, and actively maintained. Install it today and start displaying your WordPress content exactly how you want.
Compatible with WordPress 5.8+ · Tested up to 6.9.1 · PHP 7.4+