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User Submitted Posts – Enable Users to Submit Posts from the Front End

By Jeff Starr

Community & Social / User-Generated Content

User Submitted Posts – Enable Users to Submit Posts from the Front End Review - In-Depth Analysis

Enable visitors to submit posts and images from the front-end of your site. Many features including anti-spam security, content restriction, and more.

Performance Overview

WPS Score

6.96/10

User Rating

4.8/5 (based on 910+ reviews)

Active Installations

10,000+

Update Frequency

Below Average It is calculated using the weighted average of same category plugins.

Security Score

1 / 10 (Very Low Risk) It is calculated using the weighted average of all versions.

What It Does

User Submitted Posts (USP) provides a front-end form that enables visitors to submit posts and upload images. Just add the following shortcode to any Post, Page, or Widget:

[user-submitted-posts]

Your site now can accept user generated content. Everything is super easy to customize via Plugin Settings page.

The submission form may include any/all of the following fields: Name, Email, URL, Post Title, Post Tags, Post Category, Post Content, Custom Field 1, Custom Field 2, Custom Checkbox, Challenge Question, Google reCAPTCHA (v2 or v3 Invisible), Cloudflare Turnstile (Invisible), Post Images, Agree to Terms.

Core features include simple setup, customizable email notifications, and the ability to display the form anywhere via shortcode or template tag. You can also set each displayed form field to be required or optional, and stop spam via input validation and captcha options.

The Pro version includes many powerful features, with unlimited custom forms, unlimited form fields, multimedia file uploads, and much more. The plugin supports translation into any language and is developed and maintained with love for the WordPress community.

Comparing to Alternatives

User Submitted Posts stands out as a straightforward solution for front-end content submission compared to other plugins in the same category.

Top alternatives

User Submitted Posts – Enable Users to Submit Posts from the Front End

Strengths

Easy to set up and use for both admins and users.
Allows customization of submission forms including categories, tags, and custom fields.
Submissions are queued for admin review before publishing.
Integrates smoothly into the front-end without backend access for users.

Weaknesses

Lacks front-end editing and deleting capabilities for users.
Some users report issues saving changes in form settings.
Limited advanced moderation features compared to some competitors.
Customization options may not satisfy very complex use cases.

User Sentiment Analysis

User feedback highlights the plugin's ease of use and effectiveness, though some limitations are noted.

Positive highlights

"Great work, very helpful and easy to follow" - sarwat parvez
"Brilliant. It does what it says without any fussing or fiddling." - rickjohns
"Perfect for keeping the site organized while encouraging user engagement!" - Putra Matahari
"Great plugin for a WordPress newbie like me 🙂" - scomor74
"It really works!" - wellpraxis

Common complaints

Cannot save changes in form settings as reported by some users.
Lack of front-end editing/deleting functionality for submitted posts.
Some users desire more advanced moderation controls.
Limited customization options for complex needs.

Weaknesses

No front-end editing or deleting for users.
Issues with saving form settings changes.
Moderation features are basic.
Customization may be insufficient for advanced users.

Who Should Use This?

Best for

Site owners who want a simple and effective way to allow users to submit posts from the front end without granting backend access.

Not ideal for

Users needing advanced front-end editing, deleting capabilities, or highly customizable moderation workflows.

Pricing & Value

Free version includes

The free version offers essential features including customizable submission forms, category and tag selection, and admin moderation of submissions.

Pro version

The premium version typically includes enhanced features such as front-end editing and deleting, additional customization options, and advanced moderation tools.

Final Verdict

User Submitted Posts is a reliable and user-friendly plugin for enabling front-end post submissions, ideal for community-driven sites.

While it covers core needs well, users requiring more advanced front-end management and customization might find it somewhat limited without the pro upgrade.

Other Notable Features

Here are a few other notable features of this free User Submitted Posts – Enable Users to Submit Posts from the Front End plugin.

Frontend Post

Guest Post

Submit Post

Screenshots

FAQ

Please check the Pro version of USP, which includes many of the most commonly requested features from users. The free version also may include new features in future updates.

USP uses the Chosen.js library to enhance the behavior and appearance of the Category and Tag fields. The enhanced fields will be displayed when either/both of the following are true:

The option “Multiple Categories” is enabled (for Category field)
The option “Use Existing Tags” is enabled (for Tag field)

If you want to disable the fancy Chosen script for these fields, you can do so by adding the following code snippet to your WordPress site:

<script>var usp_disable_chosen = true;</script>

Save changes and done. Also just FYI, here is a guide that explains how to add custom code to WordPress.

By default, the Google reCaptcha field is displayed in English. To change that to some other language, first locate the two-digit abbreviation for your language here. Then add the following code to your theme (or child theme) functions.php, or add via custom plugin:

function usp_recaptcha_querystring($query) { return 'en'; } add_filter('usp_recaptcha_querystring', 'usp_recaptcha_querystring');

Notice where it says en, that is the two-character language code you want to replace with your own. Then save changes and done.

By default, USP removes any target="_blank" attributes in submitted post content. This is a recommended security feature. It is possible however to allow blank targets:

function usp_content_patterns($array) { return array(); } add_filter('usp_content_patterns', 'usp_content_patterns');

That code can be added via theme (or child theme) functions.php, or add via custom plugin.

Here are some of the most commonly used action and filter hooks provided by User Submitted Posts:

Filters: usp_post_status usp_post_author usp_form_shortcode usp_mail_subject usp_mail_message usp_new_post usp_input_validate usp_require_login usp_default_title  Actions: usp_submit_success usp_submit_error usp_insert_before usp_insert_after usp_files_before usp_files_after

For more, check out the list of action hooks for User Submitted Posts. And of course, check the source code for even more. If you need a hook that is not available, let me know via the contact form below.

Contributors and developers

“User Submitted Posts – Enable Users to Submit Posts from the Front End” is open source software. The following people have contributed to this plugin.