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To show visitors a notice when they read an older WordPress post, use an age-based notice plugin such as Old Post Notice. If you mean an email alert, first decide whether it should go to your editorial team, newsletter subscribers, or feed followers: WordPress handles each differently, and an editor alert is not a reader email campaign.
Choose who should receive the notification
| Goal | Route | What it does | Important limitation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Warn visitors on the post | Old Post Notice | Displays a customizable notice on posts older than a chosen number of days. | Requires a plugin; check compatibility and test its appearance on your site. |
| Alert editors about changes | WordPress.com Email Post Changes | Emails selected site users or addresses when existing posts or pages change. | It is for selected site recipients, not a general reader newsletter. |
| Send configurable site messages | Notification plugin | Supports configurable triggers such as post updates, with email or webhook carriers. | Requires more configuration; verify compatibility and recipient behavior. |
| Notify feed followers | WebSub | Notifies hubs when posts are published or updated for feed distribution. | Depends on hub and feed-reader support; it does not guarantee email delivery. |
| Email newsletter subscribers | WordPress.com Newsletter | Emails subscribers about newly published posts. | The reviewed documentation does not establish that editing an old post emails subscribers. |
| Bring a post back to prominent listings | Republish Old Posts | Changes a post’s publication date so it returns to the front page, archive order, and feeds. | Date-based permalinks can change; this does not add a visible warning or targeted email. |
Show an age notice to visitors
Old Post Notice is a plugin option when you want a reader to see an age-based message on the post itself. Its WordPress.org listing describes a customizable notice for posts older than a selected number of days. The listing also describes optional dashboard tools for finding posts carrying notices, and color and custom CSS options.
- In your WordPress dashboard, open Plugins → Add New Plugin and search for “Old Post Notice.” Menu wording can vary by WordPress version or installation.
- Install and activate the plugin from its WordPress.org directory listing.
- Open the plugin’s settings, choose an age threshold, and write the notice in language that suits your site.
- Check representative older posts on the live theme or a staging site. Confirm that the message is easy to see, readable on mobile, and not obscured by other page elements.
- Review the notice and the post before publishing. A post’s age alone does not show that its advice is wrong; check time-sensitive claims and update them where needed.
The plugin’s listing says you can replace or add to the default notice on individual older posts. Its changelog lists version 2.2.2 dated January 16, 2026, but that is not a guarantee of compatibility with every current WordPress version, theme, or plugin. Check the listing’s current compatibility information and test on your own site before rolling it out.
Email editors when an existing post changes
For WordPress.com sites, the Email Post Changes guide, last reviewed September 7, 2026, documents different settings paths depending on whether the site uses plugins.
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- As an administrator, go to Settings → Writing.
- Enable Send an email when a post or page changes.
- Select the users to notify and the post types covered, then save.
Sites with plugins
- Install and activate the Email Post Changes plugin.
- Go to Settings → Email Post Changes.
- Select the users to notify and configure post types. You can also add email addresses, one per line.
- If you want draft changes included, enable the separate draft option; published items are covered by default according to the guide.
- Save the settings and confirm that the selected recipients receive the expected alerts.
This feature is for notifying selected site users or addresses about edits. WordPress.com’s guide says it does not send emails for newly published posts, so it should not be treated as a new-post newsletter feature.
Notify subscribers, feed followers, or other recipients
Newsletter subscribers
WordPress.com’s newsletter guide, last reviewed September 28, 2026, describes emailing subscribers when new posts are published. Its subscriber guide, last reviewed September 24, 2026, says new-post updates may arrive by email, appear in the Reader, or both, depending on subscriber settings. These documents do not establish that editing an old post automatically emails subscribers. If that is your goal, check that your specific newsletter service or plugin has an update trigger, then test it with a small internal list.
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Feed followers
The WebSub plugin listing says it notifies hubs when a post is published or updated. Hubs may distribute those updates to feed subscribers, depending on the services and readers they use. This is a feed-notification path, not a promise that every follower receives an email.
More configurable site alerts
The separate WordPress.org Notification plugin documents triggers including “Post Updated,” configurable recipients, merge tags, and email or webhook carriers. It is a configurable option for site workflows, not the same feature as WordPress.com Email Post Changes. Check its current compatibility, configure a test trigger, and verify who actually receives the message before relying on it.
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Be careful about changing the publication date
Republish Old Posts resurfaces content by setting its publication date to the current date, which can move it in the front page, archive order, and feeds. It does not create an age warning or send a targeted update email. Its WordPress.org listing warns: “DON’T USE THIS PLUGIN IF YOUR PERMALINKS INCLUDE DATES”. With date-based permalinks, changing the post date can change the URL; the listing also notes that other plugins may react to date or status changes. Check your permalink structure and connected integrations before using this approach.
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