Dynamic Table of Contents Generator

A small, accessible WordPress plugin that automatically generates a table of contents (TOC) for posts and pages based on heading tags. It builds a nested, semantic TOC, provides a collapsible panel with ARIA attributes, and supports per-page enable/disable and server-side caching.

• Plugin slug: dynamic-toc
• Version: 1.6.4
• Requires: WordPress 5.2+
• Requires PHP: 8.1+
• License: GPL-2.0-or-later

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Features

• Generates a hierarchical TOC from headings (configurable levels).
• Produces accessible markup (button with aria-expanded/aria-controls, role="region", etc.).
• Collapsible panel toggle (progressive enhancement with JS).
• Per-page enable/disable meta box in the editor.
• Gutenberg block for easy insertion in the block editor.
• Shortcode support for manual TOC placement.
• Server-side per-post transient caching to avoid repeated work.
• Filters to adjust behavior and markup for advanced integrations.

Installation

1. Upload the dynamic-toc folder to your /wp-content/plugins/ directory.
2. Activate the plugin from the WordPress Plugins screen.
3. Optionally enable the TOC per page using the Dynamic TOC meta box on the post/page edit screen, or set the default via filter.

Quick Usage

Automatic Injection

• The TOC will be inserted into the post content automatically when enabled.
• Enable per-post via the Show Table of Contents on this page meta box on the post/page edit screen.
• The plugin detects headings and builds a nested ordered list reflecting the document structure.
• Assets (JS/CSS) are enqueued only when a TOC will be output.

Gutenberg Block

• Use the Dynamic Table of Contents block in the block editor to insert a TOC.
• Search for "toc" or "table of contents" in the block inserter.
• The block displays a preview in the editor and renders the [dynamic_toc] shortcode on the frontend.

Shortcode

• Manually insert [dynamic_toc] in post content or text widgets to place the TOC inline.
• The shortcode respects the same per-page enable/disable settings as the automatic filter.

Filters & Hooks

Below are the available filters and short usage examples showing how to modify plugin behavior from a theme or custom plugin.

• ttm_dynamic_toc_enabled (bool $enabled, int $post_id)
  • Filter whether the TOC is enabled for a post.

// Disable TOC for a specific post ID.
add_filter( 'ttm_dynamic_toc_enabled', function( $enabled, $post_id ) {
    if ( 42 === (int) $post_id ) {
        return false;
    }
    return $enabled;
}, 10, 2 );

• ttm_dynamic_toc_heading_levels (int[] $levels)
  • Filter the heading levels the TOC should consider. Defaults to [2,3,4].

// Include h2-h5 in the TOC.
add_filter( 'ttm_dynamic_toc_heading_levels', function() {
    return array( 2, 3, 4, 5 );
} );

• ttm_dynamic_toc_meta_key (string $meta_key)
  • Filter the post meta key used for the per-page enable checkbox. Default: ttm_dynamic_toc_enabled.

// Use a custom meta key if your site already uses a different one.
add_filter( 'ttm_dynamic_toc_meta_key', function( $key ) {
    return 'my_custom_toc_flag';
} );

• ttm_dynamic_toc_meta_key_{post_id} (string $meta_key, int $post_id)
  • Dynamic filter that allows overriding the meta key used on a per-post basis. Replace {post_id} with the numeric post ID. This hook is fired only when a valid post ID is available and allows themes/plugins to change which meta key the plugin reads for that specific post.

// For post ID 123, change the meta key used by the plugin.
add_filter( 'ttm_dynamic_toc_meta_key_123', function( $meta_key, $post_id ) {
    // You can ignore $meta_key and return a custom key for this post.
    return 'my_custom_toc_flag_for_post_123';
}, 10, 2 );

• ttm_dynamic_toc_cache_ttl (int $seconds)
  • Filter the transient TTL (default 12 hours).

// Reduce cache TTL to 1 hour.
add_filter( 'ttm_dynamic_toc_cache_ttl', function( $ttl ) {
    return HOUR_IN_SECONDS;
} );

• ttm_dynamic_toc_html (string $html, array $toc_list, int $post_id)
  • Filter the rendered TOC HTML before it is prepended to content.

// Wrap the TOC in a custom container or modify markup.
add_filter( 'ttm_dynamic_toc_html', function( $html, $toc_list, $post_id ) {
    return '<div class="my-toc-wrap">' . $html . '</div>';
}, 10, 3 );

• ttm_dynamic_toc_meta_post_types (string[] $post_types)
  • Filter the post types that show the per-page TOC meta box in the editor.

// Enable the meta box for a custom post type 'book'.
add_filter( 'ttm_dynamic_toc_meta_post_types', function( $types ) {
    $types[] = 'book';
    return $types;
} );

Notes:

• The plugin registers assets via ttm_dynamic_toc_register_assets(); you can dequeue or override the handles ttm-dynamic-toc in your theme if you need custom styling or behavior.
• Use the ttm_dynamic_toc_html filter to fully replace the output if you need a completely different markup structure.

Development

• The plugin ships with PHP_CodeSniffer (WPCS) configured for local development. Use the composer-supplied tools (if present) to lint and autofix:

# from plugin root (if composer/dev dependencies are installed)
./vendor/bin/phpcs --standard=WordPress --extensions=php -n --ignore=vendor -p .
./vendor/bin/phpcbf --standard=WordPress --extensions=php -n --ignore=vendor -p .

• JavaScript is lightweight and responsible for accessibility toggles and reduced-motion respects.

Contributing

Contributions are welcome. Please open issues or pull requests on the GitHub repository: https://github.com/NathanDozen3/dynamic-toc

When contributing:

• Follow WordPress PHP coding standards.
• Keep accessibility (keyboard interaction and ARIA) intact.

Changelog

1.2.0

• Added nested TOC rendering by heading level.
• Improved accessible collapse toggles and ARIA attributes.
• Reworked DOM handling to avoid deprecated mbstring usage.

1.1.0

• Initial refactor: removed ACF, added per-page meta box and caching.

License

This plugin is licensed under the GPL-2.0-or-later. See the LICENSE file for details.