Title: Footnote reference number is subscript, not superscript
Last modified: January 13, 2021

---

# Footnote reference number is subscript, not superscript

 *  Resolved [rkupadhya](https://wordpress.org/support/users/rkupadhya/)
 * (@rkupadhya)
 * [5 years, 4 months ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/footnote-reference-number-is-subscript-not-superscript/)
 * The in-text reference number on our website’s articles has recently started appearing
   as a subscript (at the bottom of the line), instead of a superscript (at the 
   top of the line). As recently as mid-December, it looked like it was still putting
   the numbers as a superscript.
 * We are also using the wp-Typography plugin for formatting, etc.
 * Let me know if there is a simple setting I can mess with to change the reference
   number back to a superscript – I looked through them but didn’t see anything 
   that seemed like it would affect that.

Viewing 9 replies - 1 through 9 (of 9 total)

 *  Plugin Contributor [pewgeuges](https://wordpress.org/support/users/pewgeuges/)
 * (@pewgeuges)
 * [5 years, 4 months ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/footnote-reference-number-is-subscript-not-superscript/#post-13900048)
 * [@rkupadhya](https://wordpress.org/support/users/rkupadhya/)
 * As a quick fix I’d suggest trying out the superscript setting under Referrers
   and tooltips > Referrer typesetting and formatting > Display footnote referrers
   in superscript ➜ No. But it would at most prevent the superscript from turning
   to subscript, and display the referrers on the baseline, with a need for balanced
   delimiters.
 * Multiple issues were resolved by editing inline CSS, but this time it won’t match
   anything known, because on mid-December I can’t identify anything related in 
   the changelog. For reference:
    -  [https://wordpress.org/support/topic/footnotes-now-appear-in-summaries-even-though-this-is-marked-no/#post-13685416](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/footnotes-now-appear-in-summaries-even-though-this-is-marked-no/#post-13685416)
    -  [https://wordpress.org/support/topic/footnotes-appear-in-random-places-on-academic-website/#post-13631280](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/footnotes-appear-in-random-places-on-academic-website/#post-13631280)
    -  [https://wordpress.org/support/topic/ongoing-issues-despite-having-updated-to-v2-1-0/#post-13636936](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/ongoing-issues-despite-having-updated-to-v2-1-0/#post-13636936)
    -  [https://wordpress.org/support/topic/subscript-not-superscript/](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/subscript-not-superscript/)
 * Also this time we lack a URL where the disorder could be analyzed. This was always
   of great help. (In case it’s very confidential, please email it to my WordPress
   username at Gmail. For a staging site you may wish to save a sample page and 
   attach it as .zip)
 * The starting date of using WP-Typography would be helpful if it coincides with
   the start of the disorder. I’m going to test the plugin right now.
 * I apologize for the month of defective display that Footnotes caused on your 
   website, and hope it will be fixed within the next few hours!
 *  Plugin Contributor [pewgeuges](https://wordpress.org/support/users/pewgeuges/)
 * (@pewgeuges)
 * [5 years, 4 months ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/footnote-reference-number-is-subscript-not-superscript/#post-13900099)
 * [@rkupadhya](https://wordpress.org/support/users/rkupadhya/)
 * Just tested the “wp-Typgraphy” plugin. It does not affect the superscript footnote
   referrers in GeneratePress.
 * Please include theme information in your follow-up response. Many things work
   differently in one theme as opposed to another theme.
    -  This reply was modified 5 years, 4 months ago by [pewgeuges](https://wordpress.org/support/users/pewgeuges/).
 *  Thread Starter [rkupadhya](https://wordpress.org/support/users/rkupadhya/)
 * (@rkupadhya)
 * [5 years, 4 months ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/footnote-reference-number-is-subscript-not-superscript/#post-13900174)
 * [@pewgeuges](https://wordpress.org/support/users/pewgeuges/)
 * Thanks for the initial thoughts – and no rush, this is an all-volunteer blog,
   hence why it took us so long to even notice that something was looking weird.
 * As an example, see this page, where in the first sentence there is reference 
   one that appears as a subscript: [https://viewpointmag.com/2020/07/27/resistance-on-a-granular-level-an-interview-with-magdi-el-gizouli-on-the-neighbourhood-committees-in-the-sudanese-uprising/](https://viewpointmag.com/2020/07/27/resistance-on-a-granular-level-an-interview-with-magdi-el-gizouli-on-the-neighbourhood-committees-in-the-sudanese-uprising/)
 * The theme is “Path”; this has been the case for many years and has not changed.
 * The wp-Typology plugin has been used also for a long time, many years now.
 * I tried changing the “Display footnote referers in superscript” to “No”; I’m 
   not 100% sure, but doing that seems like it might be making the reference even
   more offset to below the line. Or at least, that’s how it looks in the “Quick
   start guide” preview page; on the website it doesn’t seem to change as much, 
   if at all.
 * No rush on this – I myself will probably have to look at this more over the next
   couple of evenings, or the weekend.
 *  Plugin Contributor [pewgeuges](https://wordpress.org/support/users/pewgeuges/)
 * (@pewgeuges)
 * [5 years, 4 months ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/footnote-reference-number-is-subscript-not-superscript/#post-13900264)
 * [@rkupadhya](https://wordpress.org/support/users/rkupadhya/)
 * Thank you. Sorry for mentioning the setting; you may change it back to Yes.
 * The fix involves two steps, both related to inline CSS:
 * **1. In Footnotes’ Custom CSS:**
 * Replace:
 *     ```
       .footnote_plugin_tooltip_text {
       	position: relative !important;
       	top: .7em !important;
       	color:red;
       }
       ```
   
 * With:
 *     ```
       .footnote_plugin_tooltip_text {
       	color:red;
       }
       ```
   
 * **2. In Path theme’s Custom CSS:**
 * Remove:
 *     ```
       .footnote_plugin_tooltip_text {
       	position: relative;
       	top: -2em;
       }
       ```
   
 * The first edit, in the plugin, removes the subscript. Then the same selectors
   in Path’s Custom CSS are not overridden any longer, and need to be deleted to
   lower the referrers’ vertical alignment. After both edits, referrers display 
   as regular superscript.
 * My apologies for changing the plugin’s public style sheet. Footnotes contained
   three not cross-theme-compatible and not cross-browser-compatible rules that 
   needed to be deleted as soon or late as for 2.0.6 on November 5, given they were
   causing exactly that same behavior in some browsers and in a number of themes:
 *     ```
       .footnote_plugin_tooltip_text {
           vertical-align: top !important;
           position: relative !important;
           top: 0.6em !important;
       }
       ```
   
 * Previously, your website’s footnote referrer display was correct because Footnotes’
   style sheet had also this rule:
 *     ```
       .footnote_plugin_tooltip_text {
           vertical-align: top !important;
       }
       ```
   
 * But it cannot remain, because if alone, it raises the referrers above caps height.
 * Alternatively, you may leave everything as-is and just add the above rule, either
   in Footnotes’ Custom CSS or in Path’s Custom CSS (or in both). But as mentioned,
   that solution doesn’t warrant cross-browser compatibility. Therefore we need 
   to ditch all these tweaks and revert to plain superscript.
    -  This reply was modified 5 years, 4 months ago by [pewgeuges](https://wordpress.org/support/users/pewgeuges/).
    -  This reply was modified 5 years, 4 months ago by [pewgeuges](https://wordpress.org/support/users/pewgeuges/).
 *  Thread Starter [rkupadhya](https://wordpress.org/support/users/rkupadhya/)
 * (@rkupadhya)
 * [5 years, 4 months ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/footnote-reference-number-is-subscript-not-superscript/#post-13905190)
 * Excellent, a very simple fix.
 * However, as a noob I have hit a snag – how do you update the Footnotes Custom
   CSS? I tried editing the code in the “Custom CSS” tab of the plugin’s page in
   the Admin, in the “new text area” below the “Your Existing Custom CSS code”, 
   but nothing seems to happen when I click Save Changes. Is there somewhere else
   I need to go to upload the changes?
 *  Plugin Contributor [pewgeuges](https://wordpress.org/support/users/pewgeuges/)
 * (@pewgeuges)
 * [5 years, 4 months ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/footnote-reference-number-is-subscript-not-superscript/#post-13905358)
 * [@rkupadhya](https://wordpress.org/support/users/rkupadhya/)
 * You don’t need to do anything else, the custom CSS is fully functional. A string
   added in the new text area is saved and added as inline CSS in its place in the
   page header, in WordPress v5.6 for instance.
 * Thank you for reporting the bug of the “Settings saved” message. Current Footnotes
   v2.5.0 displays it still in WordPress v5.5.3, but in WordPress v5.6 it is gone,
   while other plugins (tested with wp-Typography) still show the message.
 * I need to investigate this bug, that I didn’t notice before you pointed it out.
   A Google search done for the purpose brings up an unrelated new bug under the
   same WP version: [https://wordpress.org/support/topic/weird-behaviour-after-recent-wordpress-5-6-update/](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/weird-behaviour-after-recent-wordpress-5-6-update/)
   Apparently I missed out on a disruption; jQuery issues, declared as critical 
   with v5.6, have been fixed in Footnotes. I still can’t figure out what this is
   about.
 * Beside that, as you are already having Custom CSS in Footnotes, the dashboard
   suggests to copy-paste it into the new text area and set the Boolean to No, for
   a clean and easy-to-use UI where the legacy boxes would disappear, and only the
   new one under its own tab will remain. (After being hidden, the legacy box and
   its mirror should empty automatically as undisplayed settings are zeroed.)
 * But the new issue about the missing confirmation message is new top priority 
   since the disturbing lack of confirmation pulls UX down.
 * Thanks!
    -  This reply was modified 5 years, 4 months ago by [pewgeuges](https://wordpress.org/support/users/pewgeuges/).
    -  This reply was modified 5 years, 4 months ago by [pewgeuges](https://wordpress.org/support/users/pewgeuges/).
    -  This reply was modified 5 years, 4 months ago by [pewgeuges](https://wordpress.org/support/users/pewgeuges/).
    -  This reply was modified 5 years, 4 months ago by [pewgeuges](https://wordpress.org/support/users/pewgeuges/).
    -  This reply was modified 5 years, 4 months ago by [pewgeuges](https://wordpress.org/support/users/pewgeuges/).
 *  Plugin Contributor [pewgeuges](https://wordpress.org/support/users/pewgeuges/)
 * (@pewgeuges)
 * [5 years, 4 months ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/footnote-reference-number-is-subscript-not-superscript/#post-13905546)
 * [@rkupadhya](https://wordpress.org/support/users/rkupadhya/)
 * Sorry for misunderstanding your feedback. It’s not about the message, that shows
   up, but the referrers are still subscript.
 * Indeed there is another place that needs to be fixed. That is because your existing
   Footnotes Custom CSS is still there. Adding the new code does not suffice; you
   need to replace your existing three rules with the good one rule where the two
   existing buggy rules are discarded.
 * Existing Custom CSS can also be edited at the bottom of the `Referrers and tooltips`
   tab, where the legacy Custom CSS text area resides.
 * Migrating the Custom CSS screws everything up, but it couldn’t be just moved,
   that does not work with this settings data structure, and it couldn’t be left
   either because that is a bad UI design. Originally the Custom CSS setting was
   added under a new dedicated tab, in v1.3.0.
 * Please do the following:
    1. Under Custom CSS, copy the content of the mirror of your existing Custom CSS
       and paste it into the new text area below.
    2. Set Show legacy Custom CSS settings containers: to No.
    3. Edit Custom CSS by deleting the following rules: `position: relative !important;`
       and `top: .7em !important;`
    4. Remove an eventual duplicate `.footnote_plugin_tooltip_text {color:red;}`.
    5. Save changes.
 * As a result, your previous Custom CSS won’t be in the header any longer, and 
   the referrers will display as plain superscript.
    -  This reply was modified 5 years, 4 months ago by [pewgeuges](https://wordpress.org/support/users/pewgeuges/).
    -  This reply was modified 5 years, 4 months ago by [pewgeuges](https://wordpress.org/support/users/pewgeuges/).
 *  Thread Starter [rkupadhya](https://wordpress.org/support/users/rkupadhya/)
 * (@rkupadhya)
 * [5 years, 4 months ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/footnote-reference-number-is-subscript-not-superscript/#post-13910198)
 * Excellent, it looks like it is fixed now! Looks like what was holding me up was
   the “Show legacy custom CSS settings container”; changing that to “No” and then
   trying to save the new code worked out.
 * One odd thing, it looks like that may have bumped some other settings, for example
   the References sections became collapsed; but that was an easy fix by just going
   to General Settings > Reference Container > Collapse By Default and setting that
   to “No”.
 * Thank you for your help!
 *  Plugin Contributor [pewgeuges](https://wordpress.org/support/users/pewgeuges/)
 * (@pewgeuges)
 * [5 years, 4 months ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/footnote-reference-number-is-subscript-not-superscript/#post-13910263)
 * [@rkupadhya](https://wordpress.org/support/users/rkupadhya/)
 * Thanks for your feedback, and happy that the referrers are fixed. Looking at 
   the dashboard in the light of the troubhe that this caused you to go through,
   I think that some essential information is missing about the existing Custom 
   CSS staying in the page header as long as its settings boxes are visible. That
   shall be added.
 * About the other settings, the disorder you describe is not observed in my sandbox
   and I’m clueless about its cause. Even worse, it doesn’t seem to be fixed on 
   your website: The reference container is still collapsed by default after reloading
   the linked page (a few seconds ago). We really need to investigate this further.
   Please feel free to report all and every disorder you encounter with Footnotes
   and its settings.
 * Thank you for reporting and helping fix Footnotes! Many bugs are now fixed, but
   e.g. the layout of the Custom CSS text area and its CSS class list has been compromised
   in v2.5.0 because I changed the selector; that is fixed for oncoming v2.6.0. 
   Now we need to fix the bug you are having in the reference containers right now.
 * Thanks for posting some feedback again!
    -  This reply was modified 5 years, 4 months ago by [pewgeuges](https://wordpress.org/support/users/pewgeuges/).

Viewing 9 replies - 1 through 9 (of 9 total)

The topic ‘Footnote reference number is subscript, not superscript’ is closed to
new replies.

 * ![](https://s.w.org/plugins/geopattern-icon/footnotes_9d9c99.svg)
 * [footnotes](https://wordpress.org/plugins/footnotes/)
 * [Frequently Asked Questions](https://wordpress.org/plugins/footnotes/#faq)
 * [Support Threads](https://wordpress.org/support/plugin/footnotes/)
 * [Active Topics](https://wordpress.org/support/plugin/footnotes/active/)
 * [Unresolved Topics](https://wordpress.org/support/plugin/footnotes/unresolved/)
 * [Reviews](https://wordpress.org/support/plugin/footnotes/reviews/)

 * 9 replies
 * 2 participants
 * Last reply from: [pewgeuges](https://wordpress.org/support/users/pewgeuges/)
 * Last activity: [5 years, 4 months ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/footnote-reference-number-is-subscript-not-superscript/#post-13910263)
 * Status: resolved