WordPress plugin comparison
Custom Shortcodes vs Smart Custom Fields
At a glance
- Smart Custom Fields has more active installs: 50K+, against 5K+ for Custom Shortcodes.
- On a typical day, Smart Custom Fields is downloaded about 335 times, Custom Shortcodes about 15.
- Custom Shortcodes is rated higher: 5.0 out of 5 from 1 review, against 4.9 from 21 reviews.
- Smart Custom Fields was updated more recently: Jul 16, 2026, against Apr 4, 2009 for Custom Shortcodes.
- Smart Custom Fields is tested with a newer WordPress: 6.8.12, against 2.7 for Custom Shortcodes.
- Custom Shortcodes has been around longer: since 2009, against 2014 for Smart Custom Fields.
Line by line
Smart Custom Fields leads on 6 of 7 comparable lines.
| Metric |  Custom Shortcodes |  Smart Custom Fields |
|---|---|---|
| Popular rank | #3,154 | #695 |
| Active installs | 5K+ | 50K+ |
| Downloads, last 30 days | 307 | 9.5K |
| Rating | 5.0(1) | 4.9(21) |
| Support threads resolved | – | – |
| Tested up to | 2.7 | 6.8.12 |
| Search multiplier | ×0.00 | ×0.81 |
| Last release | 17 years ago | 3 months ago |
| Requires PHP | – | 7.4 |
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
More comparisons
- Custom Shortcodes vs Advanced Custom Fields (ACF®)
- Custom Shortcodes vs Shortcodes Ultimate
- Custom Shortcodes vs Post Type Switcher
- Custom Shortcodes vs Post Duplicator
- Smart Custom Fields vs Advanced Custom Fields
- Smart Custom Fields vs Custom Block Builder
- Smart Custom Fields vs Meta Field Block
- Smart Custom Fields vs Advanced Custom Fields (ACF®)
Is one of these yours?
Track your plugin against its rivals every day: rank, installs, downloads, ratings and their releases, with alerts when anything moves.
Start free