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Best Free WordPress Plugins for News Sites And Magazines

15 plugins compared · Updated August 2026 · News & Magazine

All 15 Free only Premium only 5

Choosing a WordPress plugin for news sites and magazines comes down to a few things: whether it is still actively maintained, whether real users rate it well, and whether it does the specific job you need without dragging the rest of the site down.

We ranked 15 plugins using our WPScore, which weighs the user rating (adjusted for how many people actually rated it), how many sites run it, how recently it was updated, and which WordPress version it is tested against. 15 of them have enough public data to be scored; the rest are listed below the ranked block, clearly marked, rather than being given a number we cannot justify.

How this list is funded. Some links here earn us a commission if you buy. It costs you nothing extra, and it does not move anything up the list — the order comes from the WPScore, which is calculated from public ratings, install counts and update history. See the method.

At a glance

  1. 1. ECS Best overall 88/100
  2. 2. XML Sitemap & Google News 86/100
  3. 3. RSS Aggregator by Feedzy 86/100
  4. 4. WP RSS Aggregator 86/100
  5. 5. Ditty 86/100
  6. 6. Blog Designer Pack 86/100
  7. 7. GN Publisher: Google News Compatible RSS Feeds 86/100
  8. 8. Smart Post 86/100
  9. 9. Dynamic XML Sitemaps Generator for Google 85/100
  10. 10. Editorial Calendar 85/100
  11. 11. AF Companion 85/100
  12. 12. EleSpare 85/100
  13. 13. BlockSpare 85/100
  14. 14. PublishPress Planner 85/100
  15. 15. SchedulePress 84/100
1 ECS
Best overall Free by dudaster

ECS

Seven free modules for Elementor: dark mode, container layouts, mobile menu, editorial text, style presets, JSON editor — all modular, all free.

4.6★
from 117 ratings
100k+
active installs
Updated
Aug 2026
Tested to
WP 7.1
88

WPScore

Read review View on WordPress.org
3 RSS Aggregator by Feedzy
Free by Themeisle

RSS Aggregator by Feedzy

The most powerful WordPress RSS aggregator, helping you curate content, autoblog, import RSS & display unlimited RSS feeds within a few minutes.

4.6★
from 361 ratings
40k+
active installs
Updated
Aug 2026
Tested to
WP 7.1
86

WPScore

Read review View on WordPress.org
4 WP RSS Aggregator
Free by RebelCode

WP RSS Aggregator

The #1 WordPress RSS aggregator to quickly import RSS feeds, build a news aggregator, and for easy autoblogging.

4.5★
from 562 ratings
40k+
active installs
Updated
Aug 2026
Tested to
WP 7.1
86

WPScore

Read review View on WordPress.org
5 Ditty
Free by metaphorcreations

Ditty

Ditty offers a range of content display options, including its signature news ticker and customizable layouts.

4.6★
from 106 ratings
30k+
active installs
Updated
Aug 2026
Tested to
WP 7.1
86

WPScore

Read review View on WordPress.org
6 Blog Designer Pack
Free by InfornWeb

Blog Designer Pack

News & Blog plugin for post grid, post slider, post carousel, post filter, masonry, ticker & list category posts using shortcode, Elementor & Divi.

4.7★
from 79 ratings
30k+
active installs
Updated
Aug 2026
Tested to
WP 7.1
86

WPScore

Read review View on WordPress.org
8 Smart Post
Free by ShapedPlugin LLC

Smart Post

Display posts in Grid, Carousel, Slider, Timeline, List & Live Filter layouts with Gutenberg Blocks & Ready Patterns - Elementor, Divi, & Shortcodes.

4.7★
from 209 ratings
20k+
active installs
Updated
Aug 2026
Tested to
WP 7.1
86

WPScore

Read review View on WordPress.org
10 Editorial Calendar
Free by Marketing Fire

Editorial Calendar

Editorial Calendar allows you to view all your posts, schedule post, make quick edits, and manage your blog by dragging and dropping posts.

4.9★
from 80 ratings
20k+
active installs
Updated
May 2026
Tested to
WP 7.0.4
85

WPScore

Read review View on WordPress.org
11 AF Companion
Free by AF themes

AF Companion

One-Click Starter Sites, Performance Optimization, and Publisher Growth Tools

4.9★
from 34 ratings
10k+
active installs
Updated
Aug 2026
Tested to
WP 7.1
85

WPScore

Read review View on WordPress.org
12 EleSpare
Free by Elespare

EleSpare

EleSpare provides pre-designed templates, header/footer builders, and various post layouts for creating stunning news, magazine, and blog sites with E …

4.9★
from 44 ratings
10k+
active installs
Updated
Aug 2026
Tested to
WP 7.1
85

WPScore

Read review View on WordPress.org
13 BlockSpare
Free by Blockspare

BlockSpare

Build professional news, magazine, blog, editorial and business websites with powerful Gutenberg blocks, starter templates, advanced post layouts, sli …

4.8★
from 33 ratings
10k+
active installs
Updated
Aug 2026
Tested to
WP 7.1
85

WPScore

Read review View on WordPress.org
14 PublishPress Planner
Free by PublishPress

PublishPress Planner

PublishPress Planner has all the tools you need to plan WordPress content including a Content Calendar, Content Overview, and Kanban Board.

4.9★
from 178 ratings
6k+
active installs
Updated
Aug 2026
Tested to
WP 7.1
85

WPScore

Read review View on WordPress.org
15 SchedulePress
Free by WPDeveloper

SchedulePress

Automate your WordPress content scheduling with a visual calendar, auto/manual schedulers, missed‑post handler, social sharing options & templates.

4.6★
from 201 ratings
10k+
active installs
Updated
Jul 2026
Tested to
WP 7.0.4
84

WPScore

Read review View on WordPress.org