Slider Revolution
Premium visual builder by ThemePunch for animated sliders, carousels and hero sections, with 200+ templates, addons and social or WooCommerce content.
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MetaSlider
Lightweight freemium slideshow and carousel plugin for images and local video; Pro adds layer, YouTube, post feed and WooCommerce slides.
Free installs500K+WordPress.org, active
Est. Pro installs~22KLikely 14K–33K
Vendor claims800K+Vendor's own figure
Rating4.6/5743 reviews
Price from$79/yrFreemium
Last updated27 Oct 2026Version 3.114.0
Overview
MetaSlider is a long-standing slideshow plugin on WordPress.org, now developed by MetaSlider LLC (the team behind PublishPress). It focuses on straightforward image slideshows and carousels that are quick to set up, rather than on free-form animated scenes.
You create a slideshow by picking images from the media library, adding captions and links, choosing a transition and a theme, and embedding it with the Gutenberg block, a shortcode or a widget. Smart Crop keeps images in proportion, carousel mode works with every slide type, local MP4, WebM and MOV video slides are free, and lazy loading can be switched on per slideshow. A Quick Start screen lets you import demo slideshows as a starting point.
Free vs Pro
MetaSlider Pro (sold as part of a bundle that also includes Gallery Pro) adds YouTube, Vimeo and TikTok slides, external image and video slides, layer slides with drag-and-drop HTML layers and CSS3 animations, post feed slides from posts, events, ACF fields or WooCommerce products, custom HTML slides, slide scheduling, thumbnail and filmstrip navigation, extra themes and a live theme editor. Licences are annual, and the pricing page has recently shown a 50% discount off the regular price.
Strengths and limitations
- Strengths: simple workflow, light front-end output that loads only what each slideshow needs, translation plugin support, Gutenberg block.
- Limitations: no visual canvas editor for the free slides, layer slides and YouTube video are Pro-only, no social feed sources, and page builders use the shortcode rather than dedicated widgets.
MetaSlider suits sites that need a reliable image slideshow or carousel without a heavy builder, with the option to add layered or product slides later.
Best for: Sites that want a simple, light image slideshow or carousel with optional layered and product slides in Pro.
MetaSlider is a dependable, lightweight choice for image slideshows and carousels, and the free version covers most basic needs. It is not a scene builder, so designers wanting animated layered hero sections will find Smart Slider 3 or Slider Revolution more capable.
Pros
- Quick to set up for plain image slideshows
- Carousel mode and local video slides in the free version
- Built-in lazy loading and minimal scripts
- Gutenberg block, shortcode and widget
- Pro adds layer, post feed and WooCommerce slides
- 30-day money-back guarantee
Cons
- No free-form visual canvas for standard slides
- YouTube and Vimeo slides need Pro
- No social feed or RSS sources
- Page builders use a shortcode rather than native widgets
Key features
What MetaSlider highlights on its WordPress.org page and its own website, split by version.
Free version WordPress.org
- Image slides with captions and links
- Carousel mode for all slide types
- Local MP4, WebM and MOV video slides
- Smart Crop and Smart Pad
- Transition, speed and timing settings
- Lazy loading per slideshow
- Image title and alt text fields
- Quick Start demo slideshows
- Gutenberg block, shortcode and widget
- Unsplash image library
- WPML and Polylang support
- Touch swipe on mobile
Pro / paid adds From $79/yr
- YouTube, Vimeo and TikTok slides
- External image and video slides
- Layer slides with CSS3 animations
- Post feed slides with ACF fields
- WooCommerce product slides
- Custom HTML slides
- Thumbnail and filmstrip navigation
- Slide scheduling by date and time
- Premium themes and theme editor
- Hide layer elements per device
- Gallery Pro included
Feature checklist
18 of 18 features we track in Sliders & Carousels, feature score 92/100
Slide types 6/6
Image slider Key
Slides from images with captions and links.
Image slides with captions, links, title and alt text.
Included
Video slides
YouTube, Vimeo or self-hosted video in slides.
Local video slides free; YouTube, Vimeo and TikTok slides need Pro.
Included
Post & product sliders Key
Slides built automatically from posts, pages or WooCommerce products.
Post feed slides from posts, pages, events or products.
Paid version Pro
Carousels Key
Multiple items visible at once, scrolling as a carousel.
Carousel mode works with all free and Pro slide types.
Included
Layers & free-form editing Key
Text, buttons and images positioned freely as layers on each slide.
Layer slides with drag-and-drop HTML layers and CSS3 animations.
Paid version Pro
Hero & full-screen sections
Full-width or full-screen hero sliders and scenes.
Full-width slideshows via settings; layered hero designs need Pro layer slides.
Partial
Editing & design 5/5
Visual drag-and-drop editor Key
Edit slides visually with a live preview.
Form-based slide editor with preview; drag-and-drop canvas only for Pro layer slides.
Partial
Ready-made templates
Pre-designed slider templates to import.
Quick Start screen imports demo slideshows; extra themes in Pro.
Included
Animations & effects
Transitions, layer animations, Ken Burns or parallax effects.
Free transition effects; animated layers in Pro. No Ken Burns or parallax listed.
Included
Navigation options
Arrows, dots, thumbnails and progress bars.
Arrows and dots free; thumbnail and filmstrip navigation are Pro.
Included
Dynamic content & social feeds
Slides from social feeds, RSS or custom data sources.
External image/video, ACF post feed and custom HTML slides; no social or RSS feeds.
Paid version Pro
Mobile & performance 4/4
Device-specific controls Key
Hide, resize or rearrange layers per device.
Device settings and hiding captions by screen size; hiding layer elements is Pro.
Included
Touch & swipe
Swipe gestures on phones and tablets.
Touch swipe for mobile devices is documented.
Included
Lazy loading & optimisation Key
Lazy-load images and load scripts only where needed.
Lazy Load option per slideshow; only needed JS/CSS is loaded.
Included
SEO-friendly markup
Real HTML text, alt text and headings rather than images only.
SEO title and alt text fields for image slides.
Included
Integrations 3/3
Block editor block
A native block for the WordPress block editor.
Native Gutenberg block plus shortcode and widget.
Included
Page builder widgets
Elementor, Divi, Beaver Builder or similar widgets.
Works in Elementor and other builders via the shortcode, not a dedicated widget.
Partial
WooCommerce product slides
Show prices, add-to-cart buttons or product data in slides.
WooCommerce product slides with image, title, price and link.
Paid version Pro
Pricing
Free
$0On WordPress.org
Free
Freeper yearUnlimited
WordPress.org version with image, local video and carousel slideshows.
1 Site
$79per year1 site
Includes Slideshow Pro and Gallery Pro; shown discounted to $39.50 at time of checking.
5 Sites
$99per year5 sites
Shown discounted to $49.50 at time of checking.
Unlimited
$199per yearUnlimited
Shown discounted to $99.50 at time of checking.
Prices are list prices from the vendor's site, checked 22 Oct 2026. Many vendors discount the first year.
How many sites use MetaSlider?
Free installs from WordPress.org, the vendor's own claim, and our estimate of paid installs.
Free version (WordPress.org)
500K+
Active installations reported by WordPress.org.
Vendor claim
800K+
Sites/users claimed on the vendor's website. source
Estimated Pro / paid installs
~22K
Our estimate, see method below.
How we estimated this: Website scans by WPoptic find the paid plugin (folder ml-slider-pro) on 5,964 live sites; they find the free version on 218,298 sites against about 550K WordPress.org installs, so each site found stands for about 2.5, giving 15K. About 550K free installs x 8% (the usual share of free sites that also run the paid version when some key features are paid) gives 44K. Combining these (weighted average) gives about 18K. The vendor claims 800K+ sites in total. Taking away about 550K free installs leaves 250K, and 80% of that is 200K. Vendor totals are loose, so we only move our figure part of the way toward it, from 18K to 22K. Likely range: 14K to 33K. This counts sites running the paid version, including sites whose licence has lapsed. Estimates are rough and based on public figures as of 22 Oct 2026.
Stats & health
Weekly downloads
201,447 downloads last week, 36M all time
Rating breakdown
| Version | 3.114.0 |
|---|---|
| Last updated | 27 Oct 2026 (7 days ago) |
| Tested up to | WordPress 7.1.4 |
| Requires | WordPress 5.9+, PHP 7.0+ |
| Support threads (2 months) | 14 of 15 resolved |
| On WordPress.org since | 15 Feb 2013 |
Company & policy
| Refund policy | 30-day money-back (source, 22 Oct 2026) |
|---|
MetaSlider compared
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FAQ
Is MetaSlider free?
Yes. MetaSlider has a free version on WordPress.org. Paid plans start at $79/yr.
How many sites use MetaSlider?
WordPress.org reports 500K+ active installations of the free version. The vendor claims 800K+ sites in total. We estimate around 22K sites run the paid version.
Does MetaSlider have image slider?
Yes: included. Image slides with captions, links, title and alt text.
Does MetaSlider have post & product sliders?
Yes: paid version (Pro). Post feed slides from posts, pages, events or products.
Does MetaSlider have carousels?
Yes: included. Carousel mode works with all free and Pro slide types.
Does MetaSlider have layers & free-form editing?
Yes: paid version (Pro). Layer slides with drag-and-drop HTML layers and CSS3 animations.
Does MetaSlider have visual drag-and-drop editor?
Yes: partial. Form-based slide editor with preview; drag-and-drop canvas only for Pro layer slides.
Does MetaSlider have device-specific controls?
Yes: included. Device settings and hiding captions by screen size; hiding layer elements is Pro.
Does MetaSlider have lazy loading & optimisation?
Yes: included. Lazy Load option per slideshow; only needed JS/CSS is loaded.
Is MetaSlider free?
Yes, the WordPress.org plugin is free and handles image, local video and carousel slideshows. Pro is an annual licence that adds layer, YouTube, post feed and WooCommerce slides.
Can I add YouTube videos to a MetaSlider slideshow?
YouTube, Vimeo and TikTok slides are Pro features. The free version supports self-hosted MP4, WebM and MOV video slides.
Does MetaSlider work with Elementor?
Yes, by pasting the MetaSlider shortcode into Elementor's Shortcode element. It also has its own Gutenberg block.
Does MetaSlider lazy-load images?
Yes. A Lazy Load option can be enabled per slideshow under Advanced Options.
Last updated 22 Oct 2026. Spotted something wrong? Suggest an edit.