When you’re interested in adding some excellent and free plugins to your WordPress, you have to know which ones are going to be the most relevant. There are over 40,000 plugins available so it’s incredibly hard to discern the ones that would make the most sense for one user.
Some users are just looking for a simple span plugin while others want more advanced features. You don’t have time to sort through the thousands of options because it’s not only time-consuming but quite a chore. Rather than sort through the options, here is a look at ways to find the best free plugins for you.
Should I just use the official WordPress plugins directory?
The directory is a nice tool for those needing resources on the free plugin options but when you have a specific one in mind, the directory can be outdated or badly reviewed. There aren’t really search filters to make it easier either.
There is an unofficial directory that may be more helpful, offering for plugin search options than the official directory. It attempts to provide only active, functional, up-to-date and efficient plugins to viewers. Only the best of the over 40,000 plugins are featured in this directory.
Ok I want to use the unofficial directory, how do I do it?
You may want to create an account with WPD to be able to use the Plugins List feature. It allows you to offer feedback by rating and voting for ones you’ve used too. Just go to “login / sign up” at the top and create an account.
When you’re ready to choose plugins, you’ll see lists with the best and most popular plugin options featuring a thumbnail image, description, category, votes and more. Look for the green bar above the main list to see how many are listed on WPD, which should be around 3,000. You can also check the “All Plugins” tab and choose a category you want.
Different Ways to Search
You may want to search by category, tag or using category and multi tag together. The official directory doesn’t have much filtering for searching but the WPD has over 20 category and subcategories. You’ll see categories on the vertical menu to the left of the site with subcategories like “Firewall,” “Redirect,” “Monitoring,” and “Overall Security.” Categories include everything from photos to social, advertisement to administration, and language to security.
To search by tag, look for them beneath the Categories option on the left. Click on that to list the tags alphabetically. Tags allowed for more detailed labelling and a less broad search from categories. Tags could include “calendar,” “camera,” “backup plugin,” “background music,” and even “accordions.” Multi tag search is another function in the search bar that comes in handy to search by keywords or multiple tags.
Check out the WPD Plugin Directory for a more complete set of options for WordPress plugins. It’s a great resource with the most up-to-date selections of plugins that can be searched by category, relevance and as detailed as needed.
