Secure Custom Fields vs Toolset
Updated 22 Oct 2026. 18 features compared side by side.
Free fork of ACF maintained under WordPress.org, including repeater, flexible content, options pages and blocks at no cost.
Premium suite from OnTheGoSystems: Types for post types and fields, Blocks for templates and views, plus Forms, Access and Maps.
Choose Secure Custom Fields if…
- You need flexible content layouts and options & settings pages
- You also want fields in code or JSON
- You want the more complete feature set (88/100 vs 75/100)
- You want to start with a free version
Choose Toolset if…
- You need listings & views without code
Secure Custom Fields includes 3 features that Toolset lacks, including Flexible content layouts, Options & settings pages and Fields in code or JSON; Toolset has 1 that Secure Custom Fields lacks, including Listings & views without code. Both include 12 of the 18 features we track. 1 feature is not yet verified for one or both plugins.
At a glance
Feature comparison
Click a screenshot to see both plugins side by side.
Secure Custom Fields ToolsetFields7/75/7
Visual builder for field groups with location rules, no code needed.
Types creates field groups and assigns them to content in the admin.
About 36 documented field types including Google Map, colour and icon picker.
Wide field set incl. address/map fields via the Maps component.
Repeater field is included free.
Repeatable field groups included in all plans.
Flexible Content field included free, with renameable and disableable layouts.
No flexible-content layout field in Types.
Post object, page link, user and taxonomy fields link content together.
Post relationships, including many-to-many, in every plan.
Inherited ACF conditional logic for showing fields based on other values.
Conditional display for single fields or whole field groups.
Options pages are supported free of charge.
No options pages feature in the Toolset feature list.
Content modelling3/43/4
Post types are registered from the SCF interface.
Types registers custom post types from the admin.
Taxonomies are registered from the SCF interface.
Types registers custom taxonomies from the admin.
Fields on users, taxonomy terms, media and comments.
Field groups for users and taxonomy terms as well as posts.
Uses the standard meta tables; no custom table storage.
Field values are stored as standard WordPress meta.
Displaying data2/44/4
ACF-style PHP blocks plus a UI to bind block attributes to fields.
Toolset Blocks shows fields in block editor templates and lists.
Front-end form functions are documented in the code reference.
Toolset Forms creates and edits posts and users from the front end.
Builders document ACF, not SCF; compatibility depends on the builder.
Elementor tags read only some post fields; shortcodes otherwise.
No built-in listing or template builder.
Blocks builds content lists, archives and custom searches visually.
Developer features3/32/3
Field values appear in REST responses, with tightened permission checks in 6.9.
Optional toolset-meta property on posts, users and terms in REST.
Local JSON plus WP-CLI 'scf json' commands for syncing.
Settings are stored in the database; no code or JSON sync option.
Inherited JSON import and export tools for field groups, post types and taxonomies.
Toolset Export/Import screen moves Types settings between sites.
Statuses: Yes Pro Add-on Partial 3rd-party No ?
Pricing compared
Secure Custom Fields Free
| Free | $0 |
|---|---|
| Free | Free per year, Unlimited |
Toolset Premium
| 1 Site | €69 per year, 1 site |
|---|---|
| 3 Sites | €149 per year, 3 sites |
| Unlimited Sites | €299 per year, Unlimited |
Downloads trend
Secure Custom Fields
26,471 downloads last week
Toolset
No WordPress.org download data (premium-only plugin).
Verdict
Secure Custom Fields scores higher on our feature checklist (88/100 against 75/100) and includes flexible content layouts, options & settings pages and fields in code or JSON that Toolset does not. Toolset still has the edge on listings & views without code. Only Secure Custom Fields has a free version. Check the features you rely on in the table below before deciding.
Biggest differences
Secure Custom Fields: included. Toolset: not included. Flexible Content field included free, with renameable and disableable layouts.
Secure Custom Fields: included. Toolset: not included. Options pages are supported free of charge.
Secure Custom Fields: included. Toolset: not included. Local JSON plus WP-CLI 'scf json' commands for syncing.
Secure Custom Fields: not included. Toolset: included. Blocks builds content lists, archives and custom searches visually.
Written from the feature, pricing and install data on this page, not from hands-on testing. How we compare.
Which would you choose?
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FAQ
Which is better, Secure Custom Fields or Toolset?
Secure Custom Fields scores higher on our feature checklist (88/100 against 75/100) and includes flexible content layouts, options & settings pages and fields in code or JSON that Toolset does not. Toolset still has the edge on listings & views without code. Only Secure Custom Fields has a free version. Check the features you rely on in the table below before deciding.
Which has more features?
Secure Custom Fields includes 15 of the 18 features we track, against 14 for Toolset. Feature count is only part of the picture; check which of the differences matter to you.
Is Secure Custom Fields free?
Secure Custom Fields has a free version on WordPress.org.
Is Toolset free?
Toolset is premium only. Paid plans start at €69/yr.
Feature data last changed 22 Oct 2026. Spotted something wrong? Suggest an edit to Secure Custom Fields or Toolset. Some links are affiliate links. We may earn a commission at no cost to you; it never affects our data or rankings.