Blogger Featured Post Carousel Slider 

Blogger Featured Post Carousel Slider

Add a Stylish Featured Post Carousel Slider in Blogger (No jQuery, Fast responsive-and-SEO Friendly)

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🧩 Introduction

If you want to make your Blogger homepage look more professional and dynamic, adding a Featured Post Carousel Slider is a great choice.
 It highlights your top or recent posts with beautiful, responsive images — just like modern news or magazine websites — and works perfectly on all screen sizes without slowing down your site.

In this tutorial, we’ll show you how to add a responsive Blogger post slider that automatically loads your recent posts using your Blogger feed — no external library or jQuery required.

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🚀 Features of This Carousel

• ✅ 100% responsive (works on mobile, tablet, and desktop)
  
  
  
• ✅ Automatically loads your latest 9 posts
  
  
  
• ✅ Displays high-quality post images (s1600 resolution fix)
  
  
  
• ✅ Auto-slide and manual navigation
  
  
  
• ✅ Lightweight — written in pure HTML, CSS, and JavaScript
  
  
  
• ✅ SEO-friendly and fast-loading
  
  
  

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🧠 How It Works

This carousel uses your Blogger’s JSON feed (/feeds/posts/default?alt=json) to dynamically load post titles, links, and images.
 Each slide contains 3 posts (on desktop), 2 on tablets, and 1 on mobile, automatically adjusting based on screen size.

It also fixes the low-resolution image problem by replacing Blogger’s default /s72-c/ thumbnails with high-quality /s1600/ images.

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💻 Step-by-Step: Add the Slider to Blogger

1. Open your Blogger dashboard

1.  → Go to Theme → Edit HTML or Layout → Add a Gadget → HTML/JavaScript.
   
   
   

1. Paste the following code:

<style>

/* === Featured Carousel (High-Quality Image Fix) === */

#featured-carousel-wrapper {

  position: relative;

  overflow: hidden;

  width: 95%;

  max-width: 1100px;

  margin: 0 auto 20px;

  border-radius: 8px;

}

#featured-carousel {

  display: flex;

  transition: transform 0.8s ease-in-out;

  will-change: transform;

}

.featured-slide {

  display: flex;

  gap: 20px;

  flex: 0 0 100%;

  justify-content: space-between;

  box-sizing: border-box;

}

.featured-item {

  flex: 1;

  background: #fff;

  border-radius: 8px;

  overflow: hidden;

  box-shadow: 0 2px 8px rgba(0,0,0,0.08);

  transition: transform 0.3s ease;

}

.featured-item:hover { transform: translateY(-4px); }

.featured-item img {

  width: 100%;

  height: 220px;

  object-fit: cover;

  display: block;

  border-radius: 6px 6px 0 0;

  image-rendering: auto;

}

.featured-item h3 {

  font-size: 15px;

  padding: 10px;

  text-align: center;

  margin: 0;

}

.featured-item h3 a {

  color: #333;

  text-decoration: none;

}

.featured-item h3 a:hover { color: #0077cc; }

.featured-nav { text-align: center; margin-top: 10px; }

.featured-nav button {

  background: #0077cc; color: #fff;

  border: none; padding: 8px 14px;

  margin: 0 5px; cursor: pointer;

  border-radius: 4px;

  transition: background 0.3s ease;

}

.featured-nav button:hover { background: #005fa3; }

@media (max-width: 900px) {

  .featured-item img { height: 180px; }

}

@media (max-width: 768px) {

  .featured-item { flex: 0 0 calc(50% - 10px); }

}

@media (max-width: 480px) {

  .featured-item { flex: 0 0 100%; }

  .featured-item img { height: 170px; }

}

</style>

 

<div id="featured-carousel-wrapper">

  <div id="featured-carousel" aria-live="polite"></div>

</div>

<div class="featured-nav">

  <button id="feat-prev">‹ Prev</button>

  <button id="feat-next">Next ›</button>

</div>

 

<script type="text/javascript">

// <![CDATA[

(function() {

  const FEED_URL = '/feeds/posts/default?alt=json&max-results=9';

  const container = document.getElementById('featured-carousel');

  const btnNext = document.getElementById('feat-next');

  const btnPrev = document.getElementById('feat-prev');

 

  // Extract first large image from post content

  function extractLargeImage(entry) {

    let imgUrl = '';

    if (entry.content && entry.content.$t) {

      const m = entry.content.$t.match(/<img[^>]+src=['"]([^'"]+)['"]/i);

      if (m) imgUrl = m[1];

    }

    if (!imgUrl && entry.media$thumbnail?.url)

      imgUrl = entry.media$thumbnail.url;

 

    if (!imgUrl)

      imgUrl = 'https://via.placeholder.com/700x700?text=No+Image';

 

    // Force Blogger’s highest quality image

    imgUrl = imgUrl

      .replace(/\/s\d+(-c)?\//, '/s1600/')

      .replace(/=s\d+(-c)?/, '=s1600');

    return imgUrl;

  }

 

  function getPostsPerSlide() {

    const w = window.innerWidth;

    if (w <= 480) return 1;

    if (w <= 768) return 2;

    return 3;

  }

 

  function buildSlides(entries) {

    container.innerHTML = '';

    const postsPerSlide = getPostsPerSlide();

    const slides = [];

 

    for (let i = 0; i < entries.length; i += postsPerSlide) {

      const group = entries.slice(i, i + postsPerSlide);

      const slide = document.createElement('div');

      slide.className = 'featured-slide';

      group.forEach(e => {

        const title = e.title?.$t || 'Untitled';

        const linkObj = (e.link || []).find(l => l.rel === 'alternate');

        const link = linkObj ? linkObj.href : '#';

        const imgUrl = extractLargeImage(e);

 

        const item = document.createElement('div');

        item.className = 'featured-item';

        item.innerHTML = `

          <a href="${link}">

            <img src="${imgUrl}" alt="${title}">

          </a>

          <h3><a href="${link}">${title}</a></h3>`;

        slide.appendChild(item);

      });

      slides.push(slide);

      container.appendChild(slide);

    }

    return slides;

  }

 

  let slides = [], current = 0, autoTimer = null;

  function showSlide(i) {

    if (!slides.length) return;

    current = (i + slides.length) % slides.length;

    container.style.transform = 'translateX(' + (-current * 100) + '%)';

  }

  function nextSlide() { showSlide(current + 1); }

  function prevSlide() { showSlide(current - 1); }

 

  function startAuto() { stopAuto(); autoTimer = setInterval(nextSlide, 5000); }

  function stopAuto() { if (autoTimer) clearInterval(autoTimer); }

 

  btnNext.addEventListener('click', e => { e.preventDefault(); nextSlide(); });

  btnPrev.addEventListener('click', e => { e.preventDefault(); prevSlide(); });

  container.addEventListener('mouseover', stopAuto);

  container.addEventListener('mouseout', startAuto);

 

  fetch(FEED_URL)

    .then(r => r.json())

    .then(data => {

      const entries = data.feed?.entry || [];

      slides = buildSlides(entries);

      if (!slides.length) {

        container.innerHTML = '<p style="text-align:center;padding:20px;">No featured posts found.</p>';

        return;

      }

      showSlide(0);

      startAuto();

    })

    .catch(err => {

      console.error('Feed load error:', err);

      container.innerHTML = '<p style="text-align:center;padding:20px;">Unable to load featured posts.</p>';

    });

})();

// ]]>

</script>

Blogger Featured Post Carousel Slider

3.            Save and preview 

your blog — the slider will automatically display your 9 latest posts in a sleek, animated carousel.

Read More 

🧱 Customize It

• Change max-results=9 → to show more or fewer posts.
  
  
  
• Adjust image height inside .featured-item img { height: 220px; } for your design.
  
  
  
• Modify 5000 (milliseconds) in setInterval(nextSlide, 5000) to speed up or slow down the auto-slide.
  
  
  

You can also replace FEED_URL with a specific label feed like:

 const FEED_URL = '/feeds/posts/default/-/Featured?alt=json&max-results=9';

•  

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🧾 SEO Tips

• Always use descriptive post titles and alt text on images.
  
  
  
• Ensure posts have at least one image for the feed to display properly.
  
  
  
• Use this carousel near the top of your homepage to highlight important content for readers and search engines.
  
  More for you

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Blogger Featured Post Carousel Slider

🏁 Conclusion

With this lightweight featured post carousel, your Blogger website instantly looks modern, professional, and engaging — all while staying fast and SEO optimized.It’s the perfect upgrade for blogs that want to showcase their best or most recent articles without plugins or heavy scripts.

I have published here what I have learned in my learning phase from different sources to solve the problem which I think will be helpful for many. If anyone has any advice on this, please email me. That way I and many of us can learn it better.

The above script is for learning purpose only and for experimental use on test websites. It is imperative that you do your own research and analysis before applying it. Remember, any experimental SEO approach involves risk, so use with caution.

Blogger Featured Post Carousel Slider: Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

1. What is a Blogger Featured Post Carousel Slider and why do I need it?

A Blogger Featured Post Carousel Slider is a dynamic section on your homepage that showcases multiple posts in an engaging, rotating display. You need it because it highlights your best or latest content, grabs visitors’ attention, drives traffic to important posts, and improves overall engagement. A well-designed slider also makes your blog appear more professional and visually appealing, enhancing user experience from the moment they land on your site.

2. What makes a Carousel Slider "Responsive" and why is it important for my blog?

A Responsive Carousel Slider automatically adjusts its layout and behavior to fit any screen size — whether viewed on a mobile phone, tablet, or desktop. This is essential because most readers access blogs via mobile devices. If your slider isn’t responsive, it can appear broken or difficult to use on smaller screens. Responsiveness not only improves user experience but is also a key Google ranking factor, boosting your SEO and overall reach.

3. How can a Featured Post Carousel Slider actually improve my blog's SEO?

A properly optimized Featured Post Carousel Slider can strengthen your blog’s SEO by:

• Internal Linking: Connecting your best posts helps search engines understand site structure and priority content.
• User Engagement: Encourages visitors to click and explore more posts, increasing session duration and lowering bounce rate.
• Content Visibility: Keeps your most valuable posts easily accessible and indexable.
• Image Optimization: Properly optimized images with descriptive alt text can also attract traffic from Google Images.

4. Will adding a Carousel Slider slow down my Blogger site's loading speed?

It can — if not optimized properly. Large, uncompressed images or heavy JavaScript can affect performance. However, an SEO-friendly carousel like the one provided in this tutorial uses:

• Lightweight vanilla JavaScript (no jQuery)
• Optimized image sizes
• Lazy loading (images load only when visible)

These techniques ensure your slider remains fast and performance-friendly without compromising visuals or interactivity.

5. How can I get or implement an SEO-friendly Featured Post Carousel Slider on my Blogger blog?

You can add a Featured Post Carousel Slider to your Blogger site in two ways:

1. Custom Code: Use HTML, CSS, and JavaScript (like the example above) for full design and optimization control.
2. Third-Party Widgets or Templates: Many developers offer ready-made Blogger slider widgets — ensure they’re responsive, clean-coded, and performance-optimized.

Regardless of your method, choose a solution that is mobile-first, SEO-friendly, and lightweight to maintain fast loading speeds and improve your search performance.