WordPress plugin comparison
Carousel vs Smart Slider 3
At a glance
- Smart Slider 3 has more active installs: 800K+, against 700+ for Carousel.
- On a typical day, Smart Slider 3 is downloaded about 7,918 times, Carousel about 10.
- Smart Slider 3 is rated higher: 4.9 out of 5 from 1,125 reviews, against 1.7 from 10 reviews.
- Smart Slider 3 was updated more recently: Oct 28, 2026, against Sep 30, 2026 for Carousel.
- Both are tested up to WordPress 7.1.4.
Line by line
Smart Slider 3 leads on 6 of 6 comparable lines.
| Metric |  Carousel |  Smart Slider 3 |
|---|---|---|
| Popular rank | #7,821 | #79 |
| Active installs | 700+ | 800K+ |
| Downloads, last 30 days | 201 | 388.5K |
| Rating | 1.7(10) | 4.9(1.1K) |
| Support threads resolved | – | 100% |
| Tested up to | 7.1.4 | 7.1.4 |
| Search multiplier | ×0.35 | ×2.50 |
| Last release | 1 month ago | 12 days ago |
| Requires PHP | 7.4 | 7.0 |
From WordPress.org's public data, refreshed every night. Downloads are WordPress.org's official daily figures for the last 30 days.
Tags they share
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