Description

Socialize makes it easy to add relevant social sharing buttons to your posts and pages without clutter or complexity.

You can add sharing buttons in two locations:
1. Above your post content, left, right, or center aligned (or floating on the left or right)
2. In a call-to-action (CTA) box below your content

Unlike many other plugins, Socialize provides a panel within the post editor for selecting which buttons appear per post. This helps you display only the most relevant sharing options, reinforcing social proof and encouraging engagement.

You can also display a customizable CTA box below the content. Use this space to ask readers to comment, share, or take another action. You control the message and which buttons appear here, on a per-post basis.

All visual elements, including button layout, floating behavior, and CTA styles, can be modified in the plugin settings. Developers will also find useful actions and filters for extending functionality.

Features

Includes 6 core buttons: Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Reddit, Pinterest, Pocket
Includes lightweight SVG-style alternatives for each service
Display sharing buttons above or below content
Supports floating button bar (left or right)
Buttons can be aligned left, right, or center above the content (non-floating)
Call-to-action section with editable text and layout
Custom post type support
Developer-friendly with actions and filters
Minimal footprint and modernized layout

Note: For proper social metadata (e.g., titles, images), we recommend using a dedicated OpenGraph plugin.

Screenshots

Scalable Vector Graphics (SVG) Buttons
Official Social Share Buttons
Default Button Setup: Drag and Drop to Rearrange
Per-Page Button and Call-To-Action (CTA) Customizations

Installation

Upload the ‘socialize’ folder to the ‘/wp-content/plugins/’ directory
Activate the plugin through the ‘Plugins’ menu in WordPress
Adjust your settings under ‘Socialize’ in the WordPress admin
Optionally set default sharing buttons
Customize buttons on individual posts or pages

FAQ

Can I change the background or border of the button containers?: Yes. These visual styles can be adjusted from the plugin settings.
How do I hide sharing buttons on a specific post?: Uncheck all buttons in the ‘Socialize’ panel for that post.
Can I disable the CTA box for a single post?: Yes. Use the “Hide Call To Action Box below this post” checkbox in the post’s Socialize panel.
How do I use my own Twitter username?: Set your preferred handle under “Twitter Source” in the settings.
What’s the difference between floating and static top buttons?: Floating buttons stay visible alongside the content. Static top buttons appear above the content and can be left, center, or right aligned.
Why don’t all the buttons show up when I select many?: The plugin is optimized for minimalism and speed. Too many buttons can look cluttered and affect load time. Try to limit to three or fewer per section.

Reviews

There are no reviews for this plugin.

Contributors & Developers

“Socialize” is open source software. The following people have contributed to this plugin.

Jon Bishop

Translate “Socialize” into your language.

Interested in development?

Browse the code, check out the SVN repository, or subscribe to the development log by RSS.

Changelog

The current version is 3.0 (2025.05.20)

3.0 (2025.05.20)

Removed OpenGraph integration
Removed Bitly integration
Removed %%% syntax for manual button placement from CTA templates
Removed deprecated services and buttons
Added SVG-based versions of supported buttons
Added support for floating top buttons with left or right alignment
Added option to center-align top button group (non-floating)
Added background and border controls for both button sections
Updated default display behavior for top buttons (no longer inline with content)
Updated CTA default messaging to reflect modern engagement patterns
Cleaned up post editor panel UI
Cleaned up and optimized CSS
Cleaned up and optimized JS
Removed unused assets
Fixed alignment issues in some themes
Confirmed support for core post types and custom post types
Verified compatibility with WordPress 6.x

2.3 (2013.10.01)

Removed Digg button
Fixed Pinterest button
Added rules to fix new Pinterest counter values
Added Bitcoin as a donation option
Added Pocket button
Make Socialize admin responsive

2.2.3 (2013.02.09)

Added strip_tags() to og:title

2.2.2 (2013.02.09)

Fixed a few bugs in admin

2.2.1 (2012.09.26)

Fixed saving of default CTA

2.2 (2012.08.09)

Added shortcode support
Global update old posts/pages settings share settings
Floating share bar
Cleaned up admin
Expanded API
Cleaned up button styles

2.1 (2012.07.30)

Added Pinterest
Removed Google Buzz
Changed location of settings and switched to tabbed navigation
Added filters and actions for easy customization

2.0.6 (2011.08.27)

Fixed bitly integration (sponsored by Bryan Eggers of VegasNews.com)

2.0.5 (2011.08.19)

Switched to new Google Plus One button

2.0.4 (2011.07.14)

Fixed assorted services javascript glitches

2.0.3 (2011.07.07)

Added Google +1 button
Slimmed down number of js calls

2.0.2 (2011.05.10)

Fixed display issues with default buttons
Cleaned up admin a bit

2.0.1 (2011.04.25)

Fixed a few upgrade glitches
New screenshots

2.0 (2011.04.22)

Adopted Open Share icon (http://www.openshareicons.com)
Optimized and organized code into classes
Created new options pages
Open graph support
More design/display options
Bitly integration
Sortable buttons

1.3.1 (2010.11.30)

Fixed LinkedIn javascript

1.3 (2010.11.30)

Added LinkedIn button
Cleaned up CSS
Added option to not display ‘Call To Action’ box on pages

1.2.3 (2010.11.15)

Fixed bug in socialize.php in socialize_metabox_action_admin(), variables not loaded properly

1.2.2 (2010.11.15)

Added unneeded returns to readme.txt

1.2.1 (2010.11.15)

Used wrong WordPress version in ‘Tested up to’ in readme.txt

1.2 (2010.11.15)

Renamed ‘Alert Box’ to ‘Call to Action’ Box and edited readme.txt to match
Re-designed settings page with collapsible drag and drop boxes to organize content
Moved ‘Please Domate’ area in settings page
Added Support area to settings page
Added Tips and Tricks to settings page
Added ‘Call to Action’ meta box to posts and pages so poster can change the call to action for a specific post/page
Added official Twitter count button
Added Topsy button
Added Facebook Like button
Added additional security to forms and data
Added color picker to admin
Updated header css with wp_enqueue_style

1.1.5 (2010.06.28)

SVN glitch

1.1.4 (2010.06.25)

Fixed issue where default Google/Yahoo Buzz options didn’t work

1.1.3 (2010.06.22)

Fixed glith where alert box would only display if inline buttons were bing displayed
Fixed CSS glitch with delicious inline button
Removed unneccesary calls to displayButtons()

1.1.2 (2010.06.18)

Added current_theme_supports(‘post-thumbnails’) to prevent error when no featured image

1.1.1 (2010.06.18)

SVN glitch

1.1 (2010.06.18)

Fixed Delicious button

1.0 (2010.06.18)

Commented out javascript
Added security to page meta box
Added Yahoo Buzz and Google Buzz buttons
Removed custom facebook button and replaced with official Facebook Share button
Created Delicious button with save count
Provided options to float in-content buttons to right or left
Provided options to display buttons on different pages
Added option to hide alert box on specific pages
Fixed CSS
Plugin now updates upon activation and keeps record of version
Buttons can now be displayed in feeds

0.4 (2010.03.29)

Added wp_is_post_revision() and wp_is_post_autosave() to prevent WordPress from trying to save empty data when autosaving
Can now add buttons to pages

0.3 (2009.10.06)

Fixed default options code

0.2

Added http://www.fbshare.me widget
Added backtype Tweetcount Widget
Added new settings for Twitter Source
Added default settings

0.1

Plugin released