--- title: "Social Feed Elementor Widget: Settings Overview" url: https://theplusaddons.com/docs/social-feed-elementor-widget/ date: 2024-06-25 modified: 2026-09-21 lang: en author: "Aditya Sharma" description: "The Social Feed widget pulls posts from Facebook, Instagram, X (Twitter), YouTube, Vimeo and any RSS feed, and lays them out on your page as a grid, a masonry wall..." image: https://theplusaddons.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/Overview-1024x541.jpg word_count: 1900 --- # Social Feed Elementor Widget: Settings Overview ## - Social Feed pulls posts from Facebook, Instagram, X (Twitter), YouTube, Vimeo and any RSS feed, and it lays them out as Grid, Masonry or Carousel. - The widget ships only in The Plus Addons for Elementor Pro, and with Pro deactivated it does not render at all. - Content Feed uses a repeater where each item selects one Source, and multiple feeds merge into one stream in date order. - Load More / Lazy Load starts with 8 cards by default, adds 4 more per click or scroll, and can show Loading... and All done! text. - Performance stores fetched feed data in the database, refreshes it on the Refresh Time schedule, and Save Data keeps a local fallback if the API fails. The **Social Feed** widget pulls posts from Facebook, Instagram, X (Twitter), YouTube, Vimeo and any **RSS feed**, and lays them out on your page as a grid, a masonry wall or a carousel. This page walks through every section of the widget, in panel order, and says what each setting actually does. ***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-widget/social-feed/?utm_source=tpae&utm_medium=docs&utm_campaign=text) ## Before You Start - **Edition:** **Pro** — **Social Feed** ships only in The Plus Addons for Elementor Pro. With Pro deactivated the widget does not render at all, and there is no free version of it.- **Prerequisite:** [Elementor](https://wordpress.org/plugins/elementor/) (free) installed and active.- **Widget to enable:** go to **The Plus Addons > Widgets**, search for **Social Feed** and turn its toggle on.- **Prerequisite:** your server must be able to make outbound HTTPS requests. The feed is fetched **server-side** while the page renders, not by the visitor's browser.- **No account needed:** **WP RSS Feed** is the one source that needs no token, key or login. All it needs is a feed URL. ## Turn the widget on - Go to **The Plus Addons > Widgets**.- Search for **Social Feed** and turn its toggle on, then save. ![The Plus Addons Widgets screen with the Social Feed toggle turned on.](https://theplusaddons.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/social-feed.png) ## Learn via video tutorial https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oiGi2NaEj7o ## Content Feed: layout, style and the feed items Everything starts in **Content > Content Feed**. - **Layout** — a row of pictures rather than words. The three choices are **Grid** (the default), **Masonry** and **Carousel**.- **Style** — four preset card designs, **Style 1** to **Style 4**, also shown as pictures. **Style 1** is the default.- **Social Feeds** — a repeater. Each item is one feed. Open the item to choose its **Source**; click **Add Item** to mix several feeds in one widget. ![The Content Feed section with Layout, Style and the Social Feeds repeater.](https://theplusaddons.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/socialfeed-content.webp) Inside a **Social Feeds** item, **Source** offers six options: **Facebook**, **Instagram**, **Twitter**, **Youtube**, **Vimeo** and **WP RSS Feed**. The default is **Facebook**. The rest of the item changes to match the source you pick. The five social sources need a credential. **WP RSS Feed** does not — it just needs a feed address, which is why it is the source used for the screenshots on this page. ## Social Feed Options | Setting | What it does | Default | | ------- | ------------ | ------- | | **Maximum Posts** | A ceiling on how many items the whole widget shows, across all feed items. | 1000 | | **Description Bottom** | Moves the post text below the media instead of above it. | Off | | **Media Filter** | **Default** shows everything, **Only Media Posts** keeps only posts with an image or video, **Hide Media Posts** drops them. | Default | | **Show Title** | Shows the post title. It applies to YouTube, Vimeo and Instagram mentions. | Off | | **Display Id & Exclude** | Prints each post's id in the Elementor editor so you can copy it. | Off | | **Exclude Post Ids** | Ids to leave out, separated by commas. | empty | | **Emotions Titles** | Shows the reaction labels in the card footer. | Off | ![Social Feed Options: Maximum Posts, Media Filter, Show Title and Display Id and Exclude.](https://theplusaddons.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/socialfeed-options.webp) ## Columns Manage Grid and Masonry only — the section disappears in the **Carousel** layout. The dropdown shows a **column count**, so **Column 4** means four cards to a row. | Device | Default | Cards per row | | ------ | ------- | ------------- | | **Desktop** | **Column 4** | 4 | | **Tablet** | **Column 3** | 3 | | **Mobile** | **Column 2** | 2 | **Columns Gap/Space Between** sets the space between cards and has its own value per device. ![Eight posts from a public WordPress.org RSS feed, four to a row, each with title, author and a relative time.](https://theplusaddons.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/socialfeed-result-rss.webp) ## Filter Option Grid and Masonry only. Turn **Category Wise Filter** on and the widget prints a row of filter buttons above the feed, built from the **Category (For Filter)** value you typed into each feed item. **All Filter Category Text** (default **All**) names the button that shows everything, and **Category Filter Style**, **Filter Hover Style** and **Filter Alignment** control how the row looks. The panel carries its own warning here: the filter is not compatible with the RSS source. ## Load More / Lazy Load Option **More Post Loading Options** is off by default. Set it to **Load More** for a button, or **Lazy Load** to keep loading as the visitor scrolls. | Setting | What it does | Default | | ------- | ------------ | ------- | | **Maximum Posts Display** | How many cards are on the page to begin with. | 8 | | **More Posts On Click/Scroll** | How many more arrive each time. | 4 | | **Button Text** | The button's label. | Load More | | **Loading Text** | What it says while it fetches. | Loading... | | **All Posts Loaded Text** | What it says when there is nothing left. | All done! | ![Load More/Lazy Load Option with More Post Loading Options set to Load More.](https://theplusaddons.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/socialfeed-loadmore.webp) ## Extra Options | Setting | What it does | Default | | ------- | ------------ | ------- | | **Refresh Time** | How often the widget asks the platform for new posts. 1 hour, 2 hour, 6 hour, 1 day or 1 Week. | 1 day | | **Text Limit** / **Limit On** / **Limit Count** | Trims long post text by characters or words. | On / char / 100 | | **More Text** / **Less Text** | The labels on the expand and collapse links. | Show More / Show Less | | **Display Dots** | Adds an ellipsis at the cut. | On | | **Content Scrolling Bar** + **Height** | Gives a long card its own scrollbar at a fixed height. | Off | | **Fancybox Scrolling Bar** + **Height** | The same, inside the lightbox. | Off | | **On Post Click** | **Do Nothing**, **Go To Website** (open the post on the platform) or **Open Fancy Box** (open it in a lightbox). | Open Fancy Box | ## Performance Turning **Performance** on stores the fetched feed in your database, so most visitors get the cached copy instead of triggering a fresh API call. The panel's own note: *"Enable this option to optimize feed loading speed and improve overall performance."* The stored copy is refreshed on the schedule set by **Refresh Time** in **Extra Options**. - **Delete** — clears the stored copies. Use it after you change a feed's settings, then switch **Performance** off and on again so the new settings are stored.- **Save Data** — **Enable** or **Disable** (the default). The panel describes it as a fallback: *"Enable this to store feed data locally. If the API fails, the saved data will be used as a fallback to keep your feed visible."* ![The Performance section: the Performance switch, the Delete button and Save Data.](https://theplusaddons.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/socialfeed-performance.webp) ## Styling The **Style** tab has a shared group and one tab per network, so you can set a house style once and then override a single platform: - **Universal** — typography and colour for the description, name, time, footer, links, hashtags and icons, applied to every feed.- **FancyBox**, **Show More Text**, **Scroll Bar**, **Load More Style**, **Filter Category** — the shared components.- **Facebook**, **Vimeo**, **Youtube**, **Twitter**, **Instagram**, **RSS Feed** — per-network overrides.- **Carousel** — only when **Layout** is **Carousel**. ## The Carousel layout Choose **Carousel** under **Layout** and the feed becomes a slider. **Columns Manage** and **Filter Option** disappear; the slider's own settings live in **Style > Carousel**, behind **Desktop** / **Tablet** / **Mobile** tabs, with **Slide Direction** and **Unique Carousel ID** above them. ![The feed in the Carousel layout with a Carousel Remote widget under it.](https://theplusaddons.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/socialfeed-result-carousel.webp) **Unique Carousel ID** is the string the [Carousel Remote widget](https://theplusaddons.com/docs/connect-social-feed-carousel-with-remote-carousel/) matches, so the arrows and dots can sit anywhere on the page. ## How It Behaves - **All three layouts render the same feed.** The same RSS source produced an eight-card grid, an eight-card masonry wall and an eight-slide carousel; only the arrangement changed.- **Load More adds the number you set.** With **Maximum Posts Display** at 4 and **More Posts On Click/Scroll** at 4, the page opened with four cards and a **Load More** button, and one click took it to eight.- **Several feed items merge into one stream.** Two sources in one widget came out interleaved in date order, not stacked one after the other.- **The default grid is four across.** On a 390px phone the same cards render at the mobile column setting instead.- **The fetch happens on your server.** The posts are already in the HTML when the page arrives. ![The same RSS feed in the Masonry layout.](https://theplusaddons.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/socialfeed-result-masonry.webp) ## Limitations - **When the connection fails you get a pink card and an HTTP code, not an explanation.** With a token that is missing, expired, of the wrong type or simply wrong, the widget renders a card reading **Somthing Wrong** (that spelling is the plugin's) followed by **400** and the network name. It does not say which of those things went wrong. The two cases you can tell apart are an entirely empty **Access Token**, which says **Empty Access Token**, and X (Twitter), which returns **Invalid or expired token.** with **Error Code : 89**.- **The Maximum Posts and Offset Post fields inside a feed item only affect WP RSS Feed.** They are shown whatever **Source** you pick, but the widget reads them only on the RSS path. For every other source the count control is **Max Results** (default **6**), further down the same item.- **Category Wise Filter does not work with WP RSS Feed.** The panel says so itself, in a note under **Filter Option**. **Category (For Filter)** is also hidden inside an RSS feed item.- **Filter Option and Columns Manage disappear in the Carousel layout.** Both sections are hidden when **Layout** is **Carousel**; the carousel has its own column settings under **Style > Carousel**.- **The feed is fetched on your server, and cached.** Nothing is requested from the visitor's browser, so a feed that works on one host can fail on another that blocks outbound requests. **Refresh Time** (default **1 day**) decides how often the request is repeated.- **Items with no image in the feed show a grey placeholder.** Many feeds put no picture in the item body at all. Set a **Fallback Image** if you would rather show something of your own, or switch **Image From** to **Enclosure** if the feed uses enclosure tags. ## Not verified So you know exactly what has and has not been checked: - **A feed of real posts from a connected Facebook, Instagram, X, YouTube or Vimeo account.** This page was checked without ever entering a real access token, API key or password, so what the finished Facebook, Instagram, X, YouTube or Vimeo feed looks like once connected was not observed for this revision.- **Lazy Load.** Only **Load More** was exercised; the **Lazy Load** branch of **More Post Loading Options** was not.- **What the button says once everything is loaded.** After the last click it still read **Loading...** rather than the configured **All Posts Loaded Text**. That was one observation on one feed, so treat it as unconfirmed.- **Styles 2, 3 and 4, and the Style tab as a whole.** Only **Style 1** and **Style 2** were rendered, and no styling control other than **Unique Carousel ID** was exercised.- **Performance, Save Data, Delete and Refresh Time.** The cached-feed path was never exercised — what is written here about it comes from the panel's own notes and defaults.- **On Post Click, FancyBox, the two scrolling bars and Text Limit.** Labels and defaults only; no click-through was measured.- **Category Wise Filter.** It cannot be used with the RSS source, which was the only source available without an account, so it was never switched on.- **Media Filter, Display Id & Exclude, Exclude Post Ids, Emotions Titles, Description Bottom and Show Title.** Labels and defaults only.- **Responsive behaviour.** Only one 390px load of the grid was checked; the tablet and mobile column and gap settings were not exercised one by one. ## Troubleshooting ### The widget is not in the Elementor panel Either Pro is not active, or the widget is switched off. Check **The Plus Addons > Widgets** and turn **Social Feed** on. ### I get a pink card reading "Somthing Wrong" The platform rejected the request. Check the **Access Token** first — that it is present, that it has not expired, and that it was generated for the right kind of account. If the card says **Empty Access Token** the field is simply blank. ### Nothing loads, and there is no error either The feed is fetched by your server. If the host blocks outbound requests the widget has nothing to show. Ask your host whether outgoing HTTPS is allowed. ### I changed a feed setting and the old posts are still there The old copy is cached. Open **Performance**, click **Delete**, then switch the **Performance** toggle off and on again. ### Columns Manage and Filter Option have vanished **Layout** is set to **Carousel**. Both sections only exist for **Grid** and **Masonry**. ## Related Docs - [How to Show Posts from RSS Feed in Elementor?](https://theplusaddons.com/docs/show-posts-from-rss-feed-in-elementor/)- [How to Create a Multi-Social Media Wall Feed in Elementor?](https://theplusaddons.com/docs/create-a-multi-social-media-wall-feed-in-elementor/)- [How to Add Live Facebook Feed in Elementor?](https://theplusaddons.com/docs/add-live-facebook-feed-in-elementor/)- [How to Connect Social Feed Carousel with Remote Carousel?](https://theplusaddons.com/docs/connect-social-feed-carousel-with-remote-carousel/) ## Frequently Asked Questions **Q: Why is the Social Feed widget not showing in Elementor?** A: The usual causes are that The Plus Addons for Elementor Pro is not active or the Social Feed widget is switched off in The Plus Addons > Widgets. This widget ships only with Pro, so there is no free version rendering on the page. If it still does not appear, the page also notes that Elementor itself must be installed and active. **Q: Which feed sources can I pull into Social Feed?** A: Social Feed pulls from Facebook, Instagram, X (Twitter), YouTube, Vimeo, and any RSS feed. The five social sources need credentials, while WP RSS Feed only needs a feed URL. That makes RSS the easiest source for testing layouts, but it also matters later because some options behave differently with RSS, especially filtering. **Q: What is the best layout if I want a filter row above the feed?** A: Grid or Masonry are the right choices if you want Category Wise Filter. The filter row only exists in those two layouts, and it is built from the Category (For Filter) value inside each feed item. Carousel hides both Filter Option and Columns Manage, so it is not the layout to pick for category buttons. **Q: Why does Category Wise Filter not work with my RSS feed?** A: Category Wise Filter is not compatible with WP RSS Feed. The page calls that out directly, and Category (For Filter) is also hidden inside an RSS feed item. If you need filter buttons, use one of the social sources instead of RSS so the widget can build the category row from those feed items. **Q: How does caching affect Social Feed performance?** A: Performance stores fetched feed data in your database so most visitors get a cached copy instead of triggering a fresh API call. The stored copy refreshes on the schedule set by Refresh Time in Extra Options, which defaults to 1 day. That helps speed up loading, but it also means old data can stick around until you clear it with Delete and re-save the cache. **Q: Can I use Social Feed as a carousel with remote arrows and dots?** A: The Carousel layout turns the feed into a slider, and its Unique Carousel ID is what the Carousel Remote widget matches. That lets arrows and dots sit anywhere on the page instead of being locked inside the feed itself. In Carousel mode, Columns Manage and Filter Option disappear, so this setup is about presentation rather than filtering or per-row card counts.