Title: WordPress plugin
Author: staff
Published: August 1, 2022
Last modified: November 19, 2025

---

 1. [Installation resources](https://docs.parse.ly/installation-resources/)
 2. [Installation tools](https://docs.parse.ly/installation-resources/installation-tools/)
 3. WordPress plugin

#  WordPress plugin

To integrate Parse.ly content analytics into your WordPress website without any 
extra integration work, use [wp-parsely](https://wordpress.org/plugins/wp-parsely/).
This plugin automatically injects the Parse.ly content analytics tracker and metadata
into your website’s pages. The plugin’s settings pages enable convenient customization.

## Installation

Installation steps differ depending on your setup. Pick the one that applies to 
your case.

**WordPress VIP customers:** Contact your account representative(s) and Parse.ly
will install the plugin for you.

**WordPress.com customers:** email support@parsely.com to ask for help.

**For all other cases (regular WordPress installations):**

 1. Visit the “Plugins” page in your WordPress dashboard and click “Add New” at the
    top of the page.
 2. Search for “Parse.ly” using the search bar on the right side. The wp-parsely plugin
    should appear in the search results.
 3. Click “Install Now” to install the plugin.
 4. After completing installation, click the “Activate” button.

**Decoupled set up**: regardless of your hosting situation, it’s possible to use
the plugin with a different front-end application.

 1. Follow the [configuration instructions](https://docs.parse.ly/installation-resources/installation-tools/wordpress-plugin?output_format=md#h-configuration).
 2. Review our [decoupled instructions](https://docs.parse.ly/installation-resources/installation-tools/wordpress-plugin/decoupled-set-up/).

## Configuration

### Basic settings

![](https://docs.parse.ly/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2025/11/image-6.png)

Basic tab of the Parse.ly Settings page

#### Required: Site ID

Now that wp-parsely is installed and activated, complete the initial configuration
for it to work.

 1. Navigate to the Parse.ly settings page in the WordPress dashboard (under the “Settings”
    menu).
 2. Fill in your [Site ID](https://docs.parse.ly/installation-developer-resources/parsely-integration/tracking-code-setup/site-id/).

#### Optional settings

 1. Parse.ly API Secret **(optional, not visible to new WPVIP customers). **The Parse.
    ly API Secret is optional and only available to customers who have purchased the
    [Parse.ly API](https://docs.parse.ly/api/). The Parse.ly API Secret is required
    for using [Content Intelligence](https://docs.parse.ly/plugin-content-intelligence/).
    If you have purchased the API, find your API Secret in the Parse.ly Dashboard under
    the “[API Settings](https://docs.parse.ly/site-settings/api-settings/)” menu item.
    If you have not purchased the API and would like to do so, email your account manager.
 2. Metadata Format: Select a metadata format. Parse.ly recommends [repeated metas](https://docs.parse.ly/installation-developer-resources/parsely-integration/metadata/metatags/).
 3. Logo: If you have a logo you want to add, specify the logo URL by using the Browse
    button to the right of the Logo setting.
 4. Track Logged-In Users: Select whether to track logged-in users. Logged-in users
    are people on your team who are creating content from within WordPress.
 5. Disable JavaScript: Select whether to use the Parse.ly plugin to load the JavaScript
    tracking on your site.

Click the “Save Changes” button after making changes to this, or any other plugin
settings, page.

## Content Intelligence settings

Manage user access for AI-powered features from the Content Intelligence tab. AI-
powered features are only available to WPVIP customers. Read more about these settings
in the [WPVIP documentation](https://docs.wpvip.com/parse-ly/parsely-features/ai-powered-feature-access/).

![](https://docs.parse.ly/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2025/11/image-5.png)

Content Intelligence tab

## Headline Testing settings

The Headline Testing tab can [install the Headline Testing script](https://docs.parse.ly/installation-developer-resources/add-on-features/install-headline-testing/)
onto your site. Doing so will enable your team to create tests from the [Headline Testing page](https://docs.parse.ly/user-handbook/dashboard/optimization-menu/headline-testing-tab/)
in the Parse.ly Dashboard.

![](https://docs.parse.ly/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2025/11/image-1.png)

Headline Testing tab

## Recrawl settings

The Recrawl tab is so named because these settings modify the on-page [metadata](https://docs.parse.ly/installation-developer-resources/parsely-integration/metadata/),
which may warrant a [recrawl](https://docs.parse.ly/installation-developer-resources/parsely-integration/metadata/crawler/whats-a-recrawl/).
Recrawling is not required if modifying these settings during the initial setup.

![](https://docs.parse.ly/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2025/11/image-4-scaled.png)

Recrawl tab

### Track Post Types as

Parse.ly tracks posts (as posts) and pages (as non-posts) by default.

 * [Pages vs Posts in WordPress](https://wordpress.com/support/post-vs-page/)
 * [Posts vs Non-Posts in Parse.ly](https://docs.parse.ly/installation-developer-resources/parsely-integration/metadata/#h-post-vs-non-post)

If your site contains [Custom Post Types](https://learn.wordpress.org/lesson/custom-post-types/),
Parse.ly recommends reviewing this setting since the plugin may not be able to categorize
them automatically.

### Use Full Metadata in Non-Posts

This setting supports a feature request discussed in a [Github issue](https://github.com/Parsely/wp-parsely/issues/1735).
In short, the request is for the plugin to provide metadata support for non-posts
like it already does for posts. Some publishers may have developed metadata solutions
that conflict with the update we made to the plugin. Therefore, Parse.ly provides
this opportunity to toggle the new functionality while resolving potential conflicts.

### Handling WordPress categories in Parse.ly

WordPress permits the use of multiple categories. However, Parse.ly will only accept
one section value. There are multiple ways of handling this situation:

 * Adjust the **Use Top-Level Categories for Section** setting.
    - Choosing `Yes...` selects “News” from a post categorized in News > National
      > Florida.
    - Choosing `No...` selects “Florida” from a post categorized in News > National
      > Florida.
 * Select an alternative to `Category` from the **Use Custom Taxonomy for Section**
   setting.
 * **Add Categories to Tags** to capture all of your categories in a tag format.
 * WordPress developers may also use one of the [predefined filters](https://docs.parse.ly/installation-developer-resources/installation-tools/wordpress-plugin-setup/plugin-common-questions/#h-can-the-rendered-metadata-be-customized-or-disabled)
   to customize the section value.

## Advanced settings

![](https://docs.parse.ly/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2025/11/image-scaled.png)

Advanced tab

#### Parse.ly Metadata Secret (**optional, not visible to new WPVIP customers)**.

This is a key given to you by Parse.ly support. Do not input any data in this field
unless instructed to do so by the Parse.ly support team.

## Next steps

 * If you need to customize when the tracker fires page view events (sites with 
   dynamic content like SPAs), review the [dynamic tracking documentation](https://docs.parse.ly/installation-developer-resources/installation-tools/wordpress-plugin-setup/plugin-dynamic-tracking/).
 * Follow the [testing instructions](https://docs.parse.ly/installation-developer-resources/parsely-integration/test-integration/)
   and [metadata review guide](https://docs.parse.ly/installation-developer-resources/parsely-integration/test-integration/how-to-check-metadata/)
   to ensure expected results.
 * If it’s necessary to modify the behavior of the plugin, review [customization options](https://docs.parse.ly/installation-developer-resources/installation-tools/wordpress-plugin-setup/plugin-faq/#h-customization).
 * Experiencing an issue not addressed in the [FAQ page](https://docs.parse.ly/installation-developer-resources/installation-tools/wordpress-plugin-setup/plugin-faq/)?
   Review [troubleshooting steps](https://docs.parse.ly/troubleshooting-issues/plugin-troubleshooting/).

Last updated: November 19, 2025