---
title: "How to Order Custom Post Types by Date in Elementor?"
url: https://theplusaddons.com/docs/order-custom-post-types-by-date-in-elementor/
date: 2023-08-25
modified: 2026-09-27
lang: en
author: "Aditya Sharma"
description: "By default a listing shows posts in whatever order the database happens to return them, which is not always the newest first. Dynamic Listing's Order By and Order controls under..."
image: https://theplusaddons.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/How-to-Order-Custom-Post-Types-by-Date-in-Elementor_-1024x536.jpg
word_count: 251
---

# How to Order Custom Post Types by Date in Elementor?

## 

- Dynamic Listing sets Content Source > Order By to Date, and Order to DESC for newest first or ASC for oldest first.
- The Plus Addons for Elementor Pro requires Elementor (free) installed and active, plus the license activated, before Dynamic Listing appears.
- Order By accepts ID, author, title, name (slug), modified, rand, comment_count, and menu_order for sorting beyond the original publish date.

By default a listing shows posts in whatever order the database happens to return them, which is not always the newest first.

Dynamic Listing's **Order By** and **Order** controls under Content Source fix that explicitly.

For the full settings tour of the **Dynamic Listing** widget, see [Dynamic Listing Widget Settings Overview](https://theplusaddons.com/docs/dynamic-listing-widget-settings-overview/).

***Requirement - This widget is a part of The Plus Addons for Elementor Pro, make sure it's installed & activated to enjoy all its powers.***

[LIVE WIDGET LINK](https://theplusaddons.com/elementor-listing/dynamic-listing/?utm_source=tpae&utm_medium=docs&utm_campaign=text)

## Before You Start

- **Prerequisite:** [Elementor](https://wordpress.org/plugins/elementor/) (free) installed and active.- **Edition:** Dynamic Listing is a **Pro** widget - it needs The Plus Addons for Elementor Pro installed and its license activated. It will not appear in the free plugin.- **Widget to enable:** go to **The Plus Addons > Widgets**, search for **Dynamic Listing** and turn its toggle on.

## Steps

- Add the **Dynamic Listing** widget to the page.- Under **Content Source**, set **Order By** to **Date**.- Set **Order** to **DESC** for newest first, or **ASC** for oldest first.

![Order By set to Date and Order set to DESC](https://theplusaddons.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/dynamic-listing-order-by-date.webp)

**Order By** also accepts `ID`, `author`, `title`, `name` (slug), `modified` (last-updated date), `rand` (random), `comment_count` and `menu_order`, for sorting by anything other than the original publish date.

## Settings Overview

| Setting | What it does | Default |
| ------- | ------------ | ------- |
| Order By | Which field to sort the query on. | Date |
| Order | Ascending or descending. | DESC |

## Related Docs

- [Dynamic Listing Widget Settings Overview](https://theplusaddons.com/docs/dynamic-listing-widget-settings-overview/)- [How to Show Blog Posts Based on Custom Query in Elementor?](https://theplusaddons.com/docs/show-blog-posts-based-on-custom-query-in-elementor/)

## Not verified

So you know exactly what has and has not been checked:

- Sort stability when two posts share the exact same publish date/time down to the second was not specifically tested.

## Frequently Asked Questions

**Q: Why are my custom post types not showing newest first in Elementor listings?**
A: WordPress listings can come back in whatever order the database returns them, so the newest post is not guaranteed to appear first. The fix in The Plus Addons for Elementor, The Plus Addons, Plus Addons for Elementor, POSIMYTH is to control the query with Dynamic Listing’s Order By and Order settings under Content Source. That gives you explicit sorting instead of relying on default database order, which is the main reason date-based lists look inconsistent.

**Q: What do I need before I can order custom post types by date in Elementor?**
A: Elementor free has to be installed and active, and Dynamic Listing must be available as a Pro widget from The Plus Addons for Elementor Pro with its license activated. The widget also needs to be turned on under The Plus Addons > Widgets before it appears in the editor. That setup matters because the tutorial depends on a Pro-only widget, not the free plugin alone.

**Q: How do I sort custom post types by newest first in Elementor?**
A: Set Dynamic Listing’s Order By to Date and Order to DESC. DESC is the key part if you want the latest posts first, while ASC flips the list to oldest first. The Plus Addons for Elementor uses those query controls inside Content Source, so you are sorting at the data level instead of trying to rearrange items visually after they load.

**Q: Can I sort a listing by something other than publish date?**
A: Order By is not limited to publish date. The page says it also accepts ID, author, title, name (slug), modified, rand, comment_count, and menu_order. That makes Dynamic Listing useful when date is not the right signal, like when you want last-updated content via modified or a random display via rand.

**Q: What is the difference between DESC and ASC when ordering posts by date?**
A: DESC puts the newest items first, while ASC puts the oldest items first. In this tutorial that choice is what changes the user-facing result, even though both use Date as the sort field. For most content feeds and archive-style listings, DESC is the practical default because visitors usually expect recent posts at the top.

**Q: Is there a guide for configuring Dynamic Listing beyond just sorting by date?**
A: The settings tour is covered in [Dynamic Listing Widget Settings Overview](https://theplusaddons.com/docs/dynamic-listing-widget-settings-overview/), which is useful when you need more than just Order By and Order. This tutorial only covers date sorting, so that overview helps if you want to understand how Dynamic Listing fits into The Plus Addons for Elementor workflow more broadly.