Desert Companion vs Homepage Control (2026)
Detailed side-by-side comparison of two WordPress plugins, based on real-time data from WordPress.org.
Quick Verdict
As of April 2026, Homepage Control has a higher user rating (4.2/5 from 19 reviews) while Desert Companion leads in active installations (20K+ vs 10K+). Both are free WordPress plugins. Desert Companion has accumulated 487K+ total downloads while Homepage Control has 337K+.
Detailed Comparison
| Metric | Desert Companion | Homepage Control | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rating | 3.7/5 | ► | 4.2/5 |
| Total Reviews | 3 | ► | 19 |
| Active Installs | 20K+ | ◄ | 10K+ |
| Total Downloads | 487K+ | ◄ | 337K+ |
| Support Resolution | N/A | N/A | |
| Last Updated | 3 weeks ago | ◄ | 5 years ago |
| First Released | 2022 | 2014 | |
| Age | 4 years | 12 years | |
| WP Requires | 4.6+ | 3.8.1+ | |
| PHP Requires | 5.6+ | false+ | |
| Business Model | Free | Free | |
| Latest Version | 1.0.96 | 2.0.3 |
Rating Breakdown
Desert Companion
Homepage Control
Download Trends
Over the past 30 days, Desert Companion averaged approximately 419 daily downloads while Homepage Control averaged 7.
Recent Reviews
Desert Companion Reviews
Quick Functionality for dummies like me
This theme had me up and running very quickly. Great for non-tech dummies. Looks good almost immediately
thats Great
im , very happy with desrt-theme , its a great servies for our website ♥thank you DESERTTHEMES ♥
Avoid
The support is garbage and when you ask for a refund following the crap support they try to refuse. It kept giving critical errors.
Homepage Control Reviews
Worked perfectly with Storefront theme
Worked exactly as described with several themes including the storefront theme I settled on. You just check which parts you want to show or not and it adds and removes them.
Solved my problem!
Thanks for this plugin, i was not able to remove the products from homepage (actually they appeared twice at me since i “renamed” the product categories) Extremely useful plugin!
Great Plugin
Great Plugin. Works well. No issues and have used it with storefront theme for some years now. Check your theme compatability befor install as i have had issues with different themes.
More Homepage Worth Comparing
Top alternatives in the same category as Desert Companion and Homepage Control
Redirect 404 missing pages to the homepage using SEO 301 redirection. Super lightweight!
Arile Extra is a companion plugin for ArileWP WordPress theme by ThemeArile.
A WP Life Companion is a useful plugin for awpbusinesspress WordPress theme by awordpresslife.
Arile Super is a companion plugin for Aasta WordPress theme by ThemeArile.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Desert Companion or Homepage Control more popular?
Which has better ratings — Desert Companion or Homepage Control?
Are Desert Companion and Homepage Control free?
Which plugin has better support — Desert Companion or Homepage Control?
Which plugin is updated more frequently?
Plugin data sourced from WordPress.org. Comparison and analysis by PluginSift.