Description

NOTA Prepublish Checker helps site owners catch common mistakes before a post goes live — missing featured image, no category, too-short content, unintended noindex, and more. All checks run inside the WordPress admin with no external services.

Main features

Per-post meta box on the editor screen showing pass / warning / error for each check
Status column on the posts list with count badges and item names, so you can spot low-quality drafts at a glance
On-save warning notice listing every item that still needs attention (publish is not blocked)
Admin settings page to toggle individual checks, adjust thresholds, and choose which post types to check
Works on both Gutenberg (block editor) and Classic Editor
Japanese and English admin UI included; easy to translate to other languages
No external API, no account, no license key

Checks included (9 total)

Title missing
Featured image not set
Category missing / only default category
Tags missing or below minimum count
Excerpt missing
noindex status (WordPress core + Yoast SEO / All in One SEO / SEOPress / Rank Math)
Content length below minimum (HTML tags excluded)
Too few links in content
Too few images in content

Each check can be turned off, and each numeric threshold (minimum content length, minimum number of tags / links / images) is configurable.

Who it’s for

Individual WordPress bloggers
Affiliate and niche site owners
Small editorial teams who want consistent quality
Anyone who currently checks posts manually before publishing

A commercial Pro add-on with publish blocking is available separately: https://notalabs.lemonsqueezy.com/checkout/buy/db60d640-b20a-452a-8c8d-84f880b4218b. The free plugin works on its own.

Current limitations

Publish action is not blocked (warning only).
noindex check covers only WordPress core setting + four major SEO plugins (Yoast SEO, All in One SEO, SEOPress, Rank Math).
Content statistics are based on the stored post content HTML. Very complex page-builder output may not be counted perfectly.
Real-time block-level updates (Gutenberg) are not provided; results refresh on save or via the Re-check button.

Pro candidates (future roadmap)

The free version focuses on the minimum useful feature set. The following are tracked as potential Pro features:

Per-category required rules
Required custom fields
Category-specific required tags
Enforced publish block on errors
Bulk re-check and CSV export
Per-role rule control
Per-post-type detailed rules
Advanced SEO plugin integration (meta description, canonical, etc.)
Team-oriented shared rule sets

Screenshots

Settings page — toggle checks, set thresholds, choose target post types.
Meta box on the edit screen — summary badge at the top, problem items first, passed items collapsible.
Posts list column — NG / warning count badges plus the exact item names that failed.

Installation

Upload the wp-prepublish-checker folder to /wp-content/plugins/, or upload the ZIP via Plugins Add New Upload Plugin.
Activate the plugin through the Plugins screen.
Go to Settings Prepublish Checker to adjust check items and thresholds (defaults work out of the box).
Open any post or page to see the Prepublish Checker meta box with live results.

FAQ

Is there a Pro version?

Yes. NOTA Prepublish Checker Pro is an optional commercial add-on for users who need enforced publish blocking. It adds publish blocking, administrator bypass, and one-click updates. The free plugin works on its own.

Buy Pro here: https://notalabs.lemonsqueezy.com/checkout/buy/db60d640-b20a-452a-8c8d-84f880b4218b

Does it block publishing when errors are found?

No. The current version shows a strong warning notice on save but does not block the publish action. The optional Pro add-on described above adds publish blocking.

Does it work with Gutenberg and Classic Editor?

Yes. The meta box is registered the standard WordPress way and appears in both editors.

Does it support custom post types?

Yes. The settings page lists all public post types; tick the ones you want checked.

Is an internet connection required?

No. All checks run locally inside your WordPress admin. No external API is used.

Is it translation-ready?

Yes. Full i18n is implemented. Japanese (ja) and English (en_US) are bundled. A .pot template is included in /languages/.

Reviews

There are no reviews for this plugin.

Contributors & Developers

“NOTA Prepublish Checker” is open source software. The following people have contributed to this plugin.

notalabs

Translate “NOTA Prepublish Checker” into your language.

Interested in development?

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

Changelog

1.7.1

Documentation only: mention the optional commercial Pro add-on in the description and FAQ. No code or behavior changes.

1.7.0

Added extension hooks for add-ons (developer-facing only; no UI changes)
nota_pc_check_results filter — modify the array of check results
nota_pc_settings filter — modify resolved settings at runtime
nota_pc_target_post_types filter — adjust which post types are checked
nota_pc_register_checks action — register additional check classes
nota_pc_after_save_check action — react to save-time check results
nota_pc_publish_notice_html filter — wrap or replace the publish-time notice HTML
nota_pc_meta_box_before_content / nota_pc_meta_box_after_content actions — render extra UI inside the meta box
No visual or behavior changes for end users

1.6.1

Renamed plugin slug and text domain from wp-prepublish-checker to nota-prepublish-checker (WordPress.org reserves “wp” prefix)
Removed manual load_plugin_textdomain call (WordPress.org now auto-loads translations by slug)
Fixed escaping of settings URL in the activation notice
Moved translators: comments to be directly above the i18n function call (Plugin Check compliance)
Tested up to WordPress 6.9
Short description trimmed to fit 150-character limit
No functional changes

1.6.0

Renamed the plugin to NOTA Prepublish Checker
Updated all display-name references in the UI, readme, and translations
Plugin slug (folder / text domain) unchanged

1.5.3

Updated plugin author metadata (Author: NOTA Labs, Contributors: notalabs) for WordPress.org submission
Plugin URI set to the canonical WordPress.org URL
No functional changes

1.5.2

Verified visual compatibility with Twenty Twenty-Four, Twenty Twenty-One, and Astra themes (no layout break)
Verified coexistence with Yoast SEO and Rank Math; noindex detection works correctly for both
Updated pre-release checklist with the confirmed test results

1.5.1

Documentation: rewrote readme.txt (English-first) and bilingual README.md
Pre-release assets: added banner / icon placeholder images and spec
Pre-release checklist added

1.5.0

Added English (en_US) translation
Admin UI now renders in natural English when user locale is en_US
Japanese display unchanged

1.4.0

i18n foundation: all user-facing strings wrapped in translation functions
Added .pot template and Japanese .po/.mo files
No visual or behavior changes

1.3.0

Posts list column now shows not only counts but also the names of failed items
New lightweight CSS loaded only on post list screens

1.2.0

Meta box redesigned with a count summary (NG / warning / OK) at the top
Problem items moved above passed items
OK items now collapsible to reduce visual noise
Layout and spacing refined

1.1.0

Post-activation notice linking to the settings page
About-this-plugin intro added to the top of the settings page
Short helper text added under each check toggle explaining why the check matters

1.0.0

Initial release
Nine core checks (title, featured image, category, tags, excerpt, noindex, content length, links, images)
Settings page, edit-screen meta box, posts list column, on-save warning notice

Description

Current limitations

Pro candidates (future roadmap)

Screenshots

Installation

FAQ

Is there a Pro version?

Does it block publishing when errors are found?

Does it work with Gutenberg and Classic Editor?

Does it support custom post types?

Is an internet connection required?

Is it translation-ready?