WordPress powers a staggering share of the web. From independent bloggers to national newsrooms, from university magazines to Fortune 500 content hubs, WordPress is the foundation that publishers return to again and again. Everlit's WordPress plugin was built to make audio a native part of that experience, not an afterthought bolted on from the outside.
Why WordPress Publishers Need Audio
The case for audio on publisher websites is well documented. Readers who engage with audio content spend two to three times longer on the page. Retention rates climb. Accessibility improves dramatically for audiences with visual impairments or reading difficulties. And publishers gain an entirely new distribution channel through podcast platforms and social video.
But WordPress publishers face a specific challenge: the plugin ecosystem is vast, and quality varies wildly. Many audio solutions require complex configuration, break with theme updates, or add significant page load overhead. Publishers need a solution that works reliably, installs quickly, and stays out of the way of their editorial workflow.
How the Everlit Plugin Works
The Everlit WordPress plugin is available directly from the WordPress plugin directory. Installation takes minutes, and configuration requires only your Everlit API key. Once activated, the plugin monitors your publishing activity and automatically sends new articles to Everlit for audio generation.
Automatic Conversion
When you publish a new post or page, the plugin sends the content to Everlit's audio engine. Within minutes, a fully produced audio version of your article is ready. The plugin handles the entire process without requiring any action from the author or editor. If you update the article later, the audio regenerates automatically to reflect the changes.
Player Embedding
The audio player appears on your article page automatically. You can configure its position (before the content, after the first paragraph, or at a custom location), its appearance (standard or mini mode), and optional features like title intros and icons. The player is responsive and performs well on both desktop and mobile devices. It loads asynchronously, so it does not slow down your page's initial render.
Editorial Controls
While the default workflow is fully automatic, editors retain full control. From the WordPress post editor, you can exclude specific articles from audio conversion, choose a different voice for a particular piece, or adjust pronunciation for proper nouns and technical terms using Everlit's pronunciation library. These controls live inside the WordPress editor, so your team never needs to leave the tools they already know.
The best plugin is one your editorial team forgets is there. It just works, article after article, without adding steps or slowing anyone down.
The Newspack Partnership
In July 2024, Everlit partnered with Newspack, the WordPress publishing platform built by Automattic (the company behind WordPress.com, WooCommerce, and Jetpack). Through this partnership, every Newspack site gets access to Everlit with a free tier of five audio articles per month.
This was a milestone for audio publishing because it brought the technology to hundreds of small and mid-size newsrooms that might not otherwise have explored audio. Local news organizations, nonprofit newsrooms, and independent publications running Newspack can now offer audio articles to their readers without upfront cost or complex setup.
The partnership also signals something broader about the direction of WordPress publishing. Automattic's decision to include audio conversion as a core capability through Newspack reflects a growing consensus that audio is not a luxury feature. It is becoming table stakes for modern digital publishing.
Real World Results
Newsrooms using the Everlit WordPress plugin are seeing measurable impact on their engagement metrics. At inewsource, an investigative nonprofit newsroom in San Diego, Everlit has played a leading role in increasing average time on page across their site. The San Francisco Chronicle offers Everlit audio as a subscriber benefit, adding value to their digital subscription package. Mountain State Spotlight, a nonprofit newsroom in West Virginia, uses Everlit to improve accessibility for their rural audience, many of whom prefer to consume news on the go.
These results are not outliers. They reflect a consistent pattern: when you make it easy for readers to listen, a meaningful segment of your audience will choose audio over text. And they will stay longer when they do.
Beyond Basic Audio
The WordPress plugin is a gateway to Everlit's full feature set. Through the plugin, publishers also get access to smart playlists that aggregate audio articles into listenable collections, podcast distribution that syndicates content to Apple Podcasts and Spotify, social video generation for TikTok and Instagram Reels, and monetization tools that let you earn revenue from audio ad placements.
Getting Started
If you are running WordPress and you are not offering audio yet, there has never been a simpler path to getting started. Install the plugin, enter your API key, and publish your next article. The audio will take care of itself. And if you are on Newspack, you can start with five free articles per month to see the results before committing to a full plan.