WordPress’ reverse chronological order not working out for you? Can’t figure out how to get the first post in your series to show up first on the front-end? Looking for a solution that won’t mess up your post’s SEO?
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Post Types Order: Quick Review
Post Types Order is a free plugin that enables users to re-order their blog posts using drag and drop functionality. The plugin also works with custom post types and the re-ordered posts are also reflected in the WordPress back-end.
If you’d like some more information about what the Post Types Order plugin does and why it’s a good idea to use it, be sure to check out Element 502’s review. Rafay wrote a helpful tutorial on how you can use the plugin to re-order your blog posts.
A Developer’s Perspective
The main thing I like about the Post Types Order plugin is that it’s convenient. I mean, sure, you can take an alternative approach and change post dates manually whenever you have to or even write up some custom code but, for certain scenarios, having a lightweight plugin that plays nicely is a lot easier. Basically, it’s a matter of how often you need to re-order blog posts and what type of re-ordering you need.
Another key benefit of using the plugin versus doing it manually is that the timestamp of the published post(s) remains unaltered which could, otherwise, mess up your posts’ SEO. Setting up the Post Types Order plugin is super simple and straightforward. For the most part, you can leave the default settings as they are and it’ll work as advertised.
Pros
- Alternative options aren’t as flexible.
- Easier for clients to use.
Cons
- You have to install a plugin.
An Average User’s Perspective
As an average user I’ve found that the Post Types Order plugin is the easiest and fastest way to re-order your blog posts in WordPress. Changing the post’s publish date manually by going into the editor window also works but isn’t exactly the fastest way to re-order posts – especially if you need to do it for a series of posts.
With the Post Types Order plugin, you get the familiar WordPress posts screen interface and all you have to do is drag and drop your blog posts into place. There’s practically no learning curve; it’s all very intuitive.
Pros
- Easy to use drag and drop functionality.
- Re-ordered posts are reflected in the Posts screen.
Cons
- You have to install a plugin.
To Sum It Up
So, should you install the Post Types Order plugin or keep changing the dates manually?
As a developer building sites for clients, it’s a lot more convenient to install a plugin that they can use to re-order their posts whenever they’d like and how ever they want as opposed to writing custom code for every possible use case scenario.
As an average user who likes to publish a lot of post series, installing the Post Types Order plugin will definitely be worthwhile. However, if you only need to re-order a few posts then it’s better to do it manually by changing the timestamp of when it was published.
Problem: My site has 2 kinds of posts: newsletters & case studies. Now they are co-mingled by date posted. How can they be ordered so each type is separate & in preferred order? I installed Post Types Order but I am not sure how to separate the 2 different kinds. Please help.
I figured it out. Using Post Types Order I put all of the Case Studies in order, with priority on top. They sit BELOW the newsletters, which were already in chronological order (newest first). Now they are not comingled.
Hi Janet
Sorry I couldn’t make it in time but, nevertheless, glad that you were able to fix it.
If you ever run into an issue again we are here (on time, hopefully!) for you. 🙂
-Maria