How to Show Multiple Authors for a Single Post in WordPress

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On many websites, content is rarely the work of a single person. Large publications, news sites, and editorial blogs often have multiple writers collaborating on a single story. By default, WordPress only allows one author per post, which can make it difficult to give proper credit to all contributors. This can be a problem for transparency, author recognition, and even SEO, as author archives and bylines are important for credibility.

If you manage a multi-author site or want to properly showcase collaborations, it is essential to display all authors who contributed to a post. Fortunately, WordPress makes this easy with a plugin called Co-Authors Plus, which allows multiple authors and guest contributors to be credited for their work.

What is Co-Authors Plus?

Co-Authors Plus is a lightweight, widely used WordPress plugin that lets you assign multiple authors to a post or page. It integrates with your theme to display co-authors in post metadata, author archives, and RSS feeds. One of its most useful features is the ability to add guest authors who don’t have a WordPress account, making it perfect for news sites, editorial teams, or collaborative blogs.

Install and Activate the Plugin

1. Log in to your WordPress dashboard.
2. Go to Plugins → Add New.
3. Search for Co-Authors Plus.
4. Click Install Now and then Activate.

Once activated, the plugin automatically adds an Authors box on the post edit screen.

How to set co-author using Co-Authors Plus.

Edit the post where multiple people contributed and scroll down to the Authors box. Here, search for existing WordPress users and select additional authors.

To add a guest author, click Add New Guest Author, fill in their details, and assign them to the post.

Save or update the post.

Now, all assigned authors will be credited and displayed on the front end.

Step 3: Display Co-Authors in Your Theme

Most modern themes automatically display multiple authors. If your theme doesn’t, you can update your template:

if ( function_exists( 'coauthors_posts_links' ) ) {
    coauthors_posts_links();
} else {
    the_author();
}

This ensures all co-authors appear with links to their author pages or guest profiles.

Benefits of Using Co-Authors Plus

This plugin is the most efficient way to display all contributors for collaborative content. You can also quickly add guest authors without giving them a WordPress account. The most notable feature of the plugin is that it integrates with most themes to show authors in post metadata and archives. So, it also improves transparency, credibility, and recognition for contributors.

Conclusion

For sites where multiple writers contribute to a single story, Co-Authors Plus is the simplest and most effective solution. It allows both registered and guest authors to be credited properly, integrates seamlessly with your theme, and helps maintain professional, transparent content. If you run a collaborative blog, editorial site, or news website, this plugin ensures every contributor gets the recognition they deserve.