Great Writing Deserves a Spotlight: Freshly Pressed Is Back

By Rob Pugh on February 4, 2026

Finding your next favorite blog shouldn't feel like scrolling through an endless feed, hoping something good appears. And for creators, getting discovered shouldn't require figuring out an algorithm.

Back in 2009, WordPress.com launched Freshly Pressed, a curated collection of posts that entertained, enlightened, and inspired. It was our way of saying "we like you, we really like you" to creators, and amplifying their great work for others to find.

We paused Freshly Pressed a few years back, but the idea never really went away. And the case for human-curated discovery is stronger than ever.

It's time to bring Freshly Pressed back.

What is Freshly Pressed?

Freshly Pressed is where we highlight standout content in the WordPress.com Reader. Unlike algorithmic feeds that reward engagement metrics, Freshly Pressed features posts because they're genuinely good. Thoughtful, well-crafted, and worth your time.

You'll find a blogger sharing travel stories next to a hobbyist breaking down sourdough science next to a poet who just hit publish for the first time.

Where to find it

The WordPress.com Reader: Featured posts appear in Discover with a dedicated section. This is the best way to discover Freshly Pressed alongside everything else you follow.
Freshly Pressed webpage: Visit the Freshly Pressed page for the full collection.
Your RSS reader: Enjoy the best of WordPress.com in your favorite RSS reader. Simply add the URL of the Discover page or the RSS feed link to your feed reader.

Screenshot of the Freshly Pressed web page.

Be discovered in the Reader

Freshly Pressed lives in the WordPress.com Reader, where your post reaches readers who are actively looking for new voices to follow. When you get featured, you'll see it — in traffic, in new subscribers, and in comments from people genuinely interested in what you have to say.

How to get featured

Want to get featured? Just keep publishing. There's no application, no special settings to enable. If you're on WordPress.com or use the Jetpack plugin on your WordPress site, you're already in the running.

We're drawn to posts that surprise us. If it made you excited to hit publish, we want to read it.

We look for posts that:

Tell a compelling story or share a unique perspective
Show care in the writing and presentation
Stand out with humor, originality, or strong points of view

When your post gets featured, you'll receive a notification and a boost of traffic and subscribers from readers actively looking for quality content.

Not publishing on WordPress.com yet? Get started for free and your next post could be the one we feature.

Discovery without the anxiety

There's no engagement score. No trending algorithm to chase. Freshly Pressed is a slower, more deliberate kind of discovery — one that rewards the writing itself. We think that's worth protecting.