At the time of publishing this article, there are 46,503 plugins on WordPress.org and counting! There are also numerous premium or paid WordPress plugins available for your website on other sites such as Code Canyon and many other private companies.
With so many choices, where do you begin? We hope to give you some simple tips to help make your selection process easier.
1. Start with a Google search
First off, if you want to find a free plugin on WordPress.org, you will NOT be finding it using their search box. The WordPress search is notoriously unhelpful. Search for plugins using a Google search. Be as specific as you can such as event registration WordPress plugin
2. Pay attention stats, support, and documentation
Once you have some results, you can start evaluating them based on the following criteria. If the plugin is free, it will be on WordPress.org. Don’t download free plugins from any other site except WordPress.org.
If you do, you might be downloading an old version, one that isn’t maintained any longer, or it may even be malware and you will end up destroying your website.
When you look at the plugin’s page on WordPress.org, look out for the following information:
Compatible up to
The plugin should ideally be listed as compatible up to the current version of WordPress.
Last Updated
The plugin should have been updated within the last two to three months. Some simpler plugins may, of course, need fewer updates, but typically, you want a plugin that is regularly updated or it shows sign of some ongoing concern for its functionality, which is most obviously evident from recent updates.
Downloads
When choosing between two plugins, it’s almost always best to go with the one with the more downloads. However the number of downloads may be skewed if a plugin is old, so look also at the stats tab to see its recent history.
Typically, you don’t want to use a plugin that has only a few downloads because you’ll end up questioning whether or not it will be maintained over time due to the lack of interest from other users, and you’ll wonder why you need a plugin no one else seems to need.
Perhaps it’s because there is a better one, and you just need to do a better job of searching for it.
Ratings
Star ratings may not mean much if the ratings are too low or too many, but it’s good to see if there are a lot more 5’s than 1’s.
Authors
Check out the other plugins the authors have developed. Are they engaged with the community and therefore have a reputation to maintain? It is important to know the plugin is going to get future attention, otherwise, you will be back to square one in a few months time.
Support
View the support forums. Are questions being answered regularly?
Changelog
Click the Changelog tab and view the updates. Is the plugin author actively involved in solving problems and releasing updates?
Instructions and documentation for WordPress plugins
Is the plugin well documented?
All premium plugin sites are a bit different, but there should be a support forum that you can view, or product reviews on other blogs you can read to give you a sense of whether or not the plugin will meet your needs.
Code Canyon is a popular premium plugin site and has stats, changelog, and support questions you can review to make sure the plugin is regularly updated. It also has a good following in the community and an actively engaged developer.
3. Only purchase WordPress plugins from well well known and community driven developers
A few popular premium plugin developers include:
There are many others, but be sure to read independent reviews of the plugins on sites such as:
Take advantage of the plugin developer for pre-purchase questions. This will be a good test of how responsive they are and help you make a good decision. Ask about refund policies as well.
4. Keep your WordPress plugins up to date and delete unused or outdated plugins
To avoid security and compatibility issues, always always keep your plugins up to date. Failing to do so can create errors on your site and security loopholes. Hacks often occur from outdated themes or plugins.
It’s the number one way hackers have of attacking and accessing your site. So, update update update. Replace no-longer supported plugins with ones that are current with the latest technologies.
5. Don’t over do it with WordPress plugins!
Use plugins with caution. There is no magic number of how many plugins you can use, but beware of compatibility issues with your theme or other plugins that you use, check for any errors in your error log on the FTP server.
Not all plugins are created equal and some don’t play well with others
