How to Add Multiple Table of Contents in WordPress (3 Steps)

Have you ever written a massive, comprehensive guide—maybe 3,000 or 5,000 words long?

Long-form content is great for SEO, but it can be a nightmare for your readers to navigate. And sometimes, a single table of contents just isn't enough.

The solution? Multiple table of contents.

By placing specific mini-ToCs throughout your post, you can guide your readers through complex sections with ease.

In this guide, I'll show you how to add multiple table of contents in WordPress in just a few clicks. It's super simple and can make a huge difference for your readers and SEO.

The “Why” Behind Multiple Table of Contents

Before we dive into the tutorial, let’s quickly cover why this strategy works.

Why (& When) You Should Add Multiple Table of Contents

If a user can’t easily find what they’re looking for, they’re likelier to bounce than scroll.

For a standard blog post, one list at the top is fine. But for massive “Ultimate Guides,” this ToC can often look overwhelming.

Readers might see a huge ToC and think, “Nope, I don’t have time for that.” This leads to them hitting the ‘back’ button, leaving your site, and increasing your bounce rate.

Conversely, if a reader does stay on your page and is deep in “Chapter 5,” they might not want to scroll back up to find a specific subtopic. So, what do they do? 

Leave your content and find the information elsewhere.

That’s why using multiple ToCs gives readers maps exactly where they need them. 

This keeps them engaged and makes your content feel much easier to read.

Why I Use the AIOSEO Table of Contents Block

All in One SEO (AIOSEO) is the original WordPress SEO plugin used by over 3 million websites. 

While there are plenty of standalone plugins that just do table of contents, I recommend using AIOSEO for one simple reason: it's an all-in-one solution.

Instead of installing a separate plugin just for table of contents, AIOSEO gives you a lightweight ToC block that's fully integrated into your existing SEO toolkit.

Plus, it does something most other blocks don't: it automatically adds schema markup (for Pro users). 

This means the AIOSEO Table of Contents block doesn't just help your readers navigate your page; it helps Google understand your content. 

This can increase your chances of getting those coveted “jump links” right in the search engine result pages (SERPs).

It's faster, cleaner, and smarter for your SEO.

How to Add Multiple Table of Contents in WordPress

Let's walk through how to set this up. 

We’re going to create a scenario where you have a main table of contents at the top, and a specific “mini” table of contents further down the page for specific sections.

Step 1: Add Your First Table of Contents Block

Start by opening your post or page in the WordPress editor. Then, add or write your content. 

Once you have your text on the page, add a new block where you’d like to include your first table of contents. To do this, click the plus (+) button, then search for the AIOSEO – Table of Contents block.

Click to add it. By default, this block will automatically pull in every heading (H2, H3, etc.) on your entire page.

In my example, I’ve included a screenshot of just the beginning portion of this ToC. The full ToC is very long, and as we discussed earlier, could be intimidating to a reader.

Step 2: Add Your Second ToC Block

Scroll down your post to a new section. 

Let's say you have a “Chapter 2” that is very long and needs its own navigation. (In my example blog post, the section after the “Basic Rules of Tennis” is titled, “How to Play Tennis.” This is where I want to add a new ToC.)

Click the plus (+) button again and add a second AIOSEO Table of Contents block right at the start of that section.

When you add your second ToC, you’ll get a new option for how you want to configure your table of contents, which we’ll look at next. 

Step 3: Configure “Synced” vs. “Standalone” Mode

This is the most important step for making multiple table of contents work together to organize your long-form content.

After adding a second (or more) ToC, you’ll see the following screen:

Here are the options:

• Standalone Mode: This acts like a traditional ToC. It will list every heading found below the block, all the way to the bottom of the page. (This is what my original, first ToC looks like. it’s long.)
• Synced Mode: This is the best option for long posts and pages. It will only list the headings between this ToC block and the next ToC. This mode creates “mini” ToCs for each section where the block is applied.

Here, we can see the ToC (synced mode) for the “How to Play Tennis” section. This view provides a cleaner UX and makes the ToC relevant to that section only.

If you would like to continue adding Table of Contents blocks to your content, you would simply repeat step 2 and 3. (With each new ToC block you add, you’ll be asked to choose between Standalone and Synced. For consistency, I recommend selecting Synced for all of them.)

And there you have it! You now know how to add multiple table of contents to WordPress.

Now, you can absolutely stop here, but I want to show you two more optional steps for getting the most our of your WordPress table of contents.

Step 4 (Optional): Customize Your ToC Settings

I like using the AIOSEO plugin because it has a few handy settings for changing the appearance of your table of contents. We’ll quickly review each one, so you can tailor your ToC to your content.

Collapsible ToC

First up is the option to make your table of contents collapsible. To enable this setting, click your ToC block then open the dropdown menu labeled “Collapsible” to the right.

The default setting is off, but you can switch to either:

• On – Open by default
• On – Closed by default

I typically select the first option (open by default) since I prefer that users see the upcoming content, then they can decide if they want to hide it. 

In this scenario, a user would click the minimize button to the left of the ToC title.

Custom Collapsible Titles

Speaking of titles, did you know that you can customize them in this collapsible option?

When you’re in the Table of Contents Settings, you can type custom titles in the “Collapsed” Title and “Expanded Title” fields.

More often than not, I leave them as is. However, on occasion, I’ll add the section name instead of “Table of Contents.” For example, “Show How to Play Tennis” and “Hide How to Play Tennis.”

Reorder ToC Headings

Finally, you can reorder the headings in  your table of contents. 

To do this, select your ToC block and click Reorder in the upper-right corner.

This will allow you to “pick up” and move the headings.

Pro Tip: You can also hide headings in your ToC by clicking the eye icon next to the heading title.

Multiple ToCs = Easier Navigation

Navigating guides and in-depth articles doesn't have to be difficult. 

By using multiple table of contents blocks, you can break your long-form content into bite-sized, easy-to-read sections. 

And with AIOSEO, you have full control to reorder, sync, and style these lists exactly how you want.

Now that you've structured your content, make sure it's fully optimized for search engines. Check out our complete on-page SEO guide and technical SEO checklist.

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FAQs About Multiple Table of Contents

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