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Best Free WordPress Plugins for Reading

15 plugins compared · Updated August 2026 · Reading

All 15 Free only Premium only

Choosing a WordPress plugin for reading 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. Reading Time WP Best overall 85/100
  2. 2. Reading progressbar 84/100
  3. 3. Read Meter 83/100
  4. 4. WP Reading Progress 83/100
  5. 5. Reading Position Indicator 82/100
  6. 6. Worth The Read 81/100
  7. 7. Catch Scroll Progress Bar 77/100
  8. 8. Daily Readings 77/100
  9. 9. Reading Time 77/100
  10. 10. Tarot Card Oracle 75/100
  11. 11. ReachDeck Toolbar 66/100
  12. 12. Blog Post Reading Time 59/100
  13. 13. Timify 50/100
  14. 14. Post reading times 49/100
  15. 15. Author Recommended Posts 47/100
1 Reading Time WP
Best overall Free by yingles

Reading Time WP

Reading Time WP creates an estimated reading time of your posts that is inserted above the content or by using a shortcode.

4.8★
from 20 ratings
20k+
active installs
Updated
Aug 2026
Tested to
WP 7.1
85

WPScore

Read review View on WordPress.org
2 Reading progressbar
Free by Jb Audras

Reading progressbar

A reading position indicator that you can use where you want: top, bottom or custom position in differents templates or post types.

5★
from 17 ratings
6k+
active installs
Updated
Aug 2026
Tested to
WP 7.1
84

WPScore

Read review View on WordPress.org
3 Read Meter
Free by Brainstorm Force

Read Meter

The Read Meter plugin displays the estimated reading time for blog posts along with a progress bar.

4.5★
from 19 ratings
10k+
active installs
Updated
Aug 2026
Tested to
WP 7.1
83

WPScore

Read review View on WordPress.org
4 WP Reading Progress
Free by Joeri van Veen

WP Reading Progress

Light weight fully customizable reading progress bar. Sticks to top, bottom or sticky menu, with fallback for small screens. Includes ert (beta).

5★
from 19 ratings
3k+
active installs
Updated
Aug 2026
Tested to
WP 7.1
83

WPScore

Read review View on WordPress.org
6 Worth The Read
Free by brianmcculloh

Worth The Read

An adjustable progress meter showing how much of the post/page the user has scrolled through, and a read time commitment label near the post titles.

4.3★
from 27 ratings
3k+
active installs
Updated
Aug 2026
Tested to
WP 7.1
81

WPScore

Read review View on WordPress.org
8 Daily Readings
Free by acesco

Daily Readings

Get the Mass daily readings on your website, automatically. 17 languages, 8 main liturgical rites available. This plugin allows you to embed the readi …

5★
from 1 ratings
200+
active installs
Updated
Aug 2026
Tested to
WP 7.1
77

WPScore

Read review View on WordPress.org
9 Reading Time
Free by whiletrue

Reading Time

Reading Time shows the estimated reading time and puts an animated progress bar inside the post.

3.7★
from 3 ratings
200+
active installs
Updated
Aug 2026
Tested to
WP 7.1
77

WPScore

Read review View on WordPress.org
10 Tarot Card Oracle
Free by chillichalli

Tarot Card Oracle

Create tarot, oracle, cartouche, and rune readings on your WordPress site using your own decks, spreads, and meanings.

3.4★
from 5 ratings
100+
active installs
Updated
Aug 2026
Tested to
WP 7.0.4
75

WPScore

Read review View on WordPress.org
12 Blog Post Reading Time
Free by Rathod Narendrasinh

Blog Post Reading Time

Display estimated reading time and let your visitors listen to blog posts with a built-in text-to-speech option. Boost engagement by helping readers c …

100+
active installs
Updated
Sep 2025
Tested to
WP 6.8.8
59

WPScore

Read review View on WordPress.org
13 Timify
Free by ThemeIM

Timify

With Timify, let your audience know about the last modified date, publish date, and reading time of your articles. You can also customize each setting …

5★
from 2 ratings
100+
active installs
Updated
Oct 2023
Tested to
WP 6.1.12
50

WPScore

Read review View on WordPress.org
14 Post reading times
Free by Dmitry Litvinov

Post reading times

A plugin that allows you to easily display the reading time of any article. Reading time is calculated based on a person's standard reading speed …

5★
from 3 ratings
700+
active installs
Updated
Apr 2023
Tested to
WP 6.2.11
49

WPScore

Read review View on WordPress.org