AddonCraft Read More Show Less

Description

AddonCraft Read More Show Less adds a clean, accessible Read More / Show Less toggle to long content in WordPress. Long posts, pages, descriptions and text blocks are cut to a height you choose, with an optional fade at the bottom. Visitors click Read more to expand the full text and Show less to collapse it again.

Use it to tidy up long articles, FAQ answers, author bios, service descriptions, reviews and landing pages without deleting a word or splitting content across pages.

The hidden text stays in the page HTML, so search engines can still read and index all of it.

Three ways to add Read More

  1. Automatic (no code) – turn on Auto-apply to post content and every long single post and page gets a Read More button.
  2. Shortcode – wrap any content in [addoremo_read_more]…[/addoremo_read_more], with optional per-block height and button text.
  3. CSS class – add the read-more class to any block or element. Works with the block editor (Gutenberg), Elementor, Divi, Beaver Builder and other page builders that let you set a CSS class.

Features

  • Auto-apply – collapse long post and page content automatically, no shortcode needed.
  • Custom collapsed height – choose how much content shows before the Read More button.
  • Fade effect – fade collapsed text into a solid color or a two-color gradient.
  • Button style presets – show the toggle as a text link, a solid button or an outline pill.
  • Custom button text – change “Read more” and “Show less” globally or per block (e.g. “Show more”, “Continue reading”, “See less”).
  • Arrow icons – built-in chevron with adjustable size, or upload your own up and down icons from the Media Library.
  • Full styling controls – text color, button color, hover color, alignment, font family, font weight and italic.
  • Smooth animation – set the expand and collapse speed in milliseconds. Respects the visitor’s reduced-motion setting.
  • Mobile or desktop only – show the toggle on all devices, only on mobile, or only on desktop, with a custom breakpoint.
  • Remember open state – keep a section expanded after the visitor reloads the page.
  • Short content left alone – content shorter than the collapsed height shows normally, with no button.
  • Multiple sections per page – every matching block gets its own independent toggle.
  • Live preview – see your changes on the settings page before you save.
  • SEO friendly – content is only visually collapsed, never removed from the page.
  • Accessible – a real button element with aria-expanded, keyboard support and visible focus styles.
  • Lightweight – one small script and one small stylesheet, loaded only when the plugin is enabled.
  • Translation ready – includes a POT file.

Shortcode example

[addoremo_read_more height="200" more="Read more" less="Show less"]Your long content here.[/addoremo_read_more]
  • height – collapsed height in pixels.
  • more – text for the expand button.
  • less – text for the collapse button.

All attributes are optional. Anything you leave out uses the global settings.

Using Read More with the block editor or Elementor

  • Block editor (Gutenberg): select a block, open Advanced Additional CSS class(es) and enter read-more.
  • Elementor: select a widget or container, open Advanced CSS Classes and enter read-more.

You can change the target class or selector under Read More General.

Screenshots

Installation

  1. In your WordPress dashboard, go to Plugins Add New, search for AddonCraft Read More Show Less, then click Install Now and Activate.
  2. Open Read More in the admin menu.
  3. Choose your collapsed height, button text and style.
  4. Turn on Auto-apply to post content, use the [addoremo_read_more] shortcode, or add the read-more CSS class to any block.

To install manually, upload the plugin folder to /wp-content/plugins/ and activate it on the Plugins screen.

FAQ

How do I add a Read More button to a WordPress post?

Go to Read More General and turn on Auto-apply to post content. Long posts and pages now collapse automatically with a Read More button. No code is needed.

How do I add Read More to only part of a page?

Wrap that part in the [addoremo_read_more] shortcode, or add the read-more CSS class to the block you want to collapse.

Can I change the “Read more” and “Show less” text?

Yes. Set the global text under Read More Labels, or use the more and less shortcode attributes to set different text for one block.

Does it work with Elementor, Divi or other page builders?

Yes. Add the read-more CSS class to any widget, module or section. The shortcode also works wherever your builder runs shortcodes.

Does hidden content hurt SEO?

No. The full content stays in the page HTML and is only collapsed visually, so search engines can still crawl it.

Can I show the toggle only on mobile?

Yes. Under Read More General, set Show on devices to Mobile only and adjust the mobile breakpoint if needed.

Why is there no button on some content?

The button only appears when content is taller than the collapsed height. Short content is shown in full.

I changed the settings but the front end looks the same.

Clear your caching plugin, CDN or server cache, then refresh the page. If you use the shortcode, its more and less attributes override the global button text.

Will it slow down my site?

No. It adds one small script and one small stylesheet, and it does not load any external files or fonts.

Reviews

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Contributors & Developers

“AddonCraft Read More Show Less” is open source software. The following people have contributed to this plugin.

Contributors

Changelog

1.0

  • New: auto-apply to post content (no shortcode needed).
  • New: gradient fade overlay with matching color.
  • New: style presets (text link, button, pill) and alignment.
  • New: device targeting (all, mobile, desktop) and remember open state.
  • New: animation speed control and shortcode with per-block overrides.
  • Improved: rebuilt settings panel with tabs and a live preview.