Firelight Lightbox vs Thumbnail Upscale (2026)
Detailed side-by-side comparison of two WordPress plugins, based on real-time data from WordPress.org.
Firelight Lightbox
200K+ active installs
Free + Premium
Quick Verdict
As of April 2026, Firelight Lightbox has a higher user rating (4.8/5 from 331 reviews) and leads in active installations (200K+ vs 4.0K+). Both are free + premium WordPress plugins. Firelight Lightbox has accumulated 7.6M+ total downloads while Thumbnail Upscale has 44K+.
Detailed Comparison
| Metric | Firelight Lightbox | Thumbnail Upscale | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rating | 4.8/5 | 4.8/5 | |
| Total Reviews | 331 | ◄ | 22 |
| Active Installs | 200K+ | ◄ | 4.0K+ |
| Total Downloads | 7.6M+ | ◄ | 44K+ |
| Support Resolution | 43% | N/A | |
| Last Updated | 3 weeks ago | ◄ | 8 years ago |
| First Released | 2010 | 2013 | |
| Age | 16 years | 13 years | |
| WP Requires | 5.0+ | 3.5.1+ | |
| PHP Requires | 7.0+ | false+ | |
| Business Model | Free + Premium | Free | |
| Latest Version | 2.3.19 | 1.1 |
Rating Breakdown
Firelight Lightbox
Thumbnail Upscale
Download Trends
Over the past 30 days, Firelight Lightbox averaged approximately 3,084 daily downloads while Thumbnail Upscale averaged 6.
Recent Reviews
Firelight Lightbox Reviews
Very good
Recommend
Doesn’t work with sunshine photo cart
I’m using the gallery Plugin “sunshine photo cart” and it does not convert image links into a lightbox gallery. I am sick of using/adjusting 5 different lightbox plugins, because every gallery uses it
Increases the value of a photo blog
The plugin works perfect and with a beautiful, but discreet animation. I’d prefer having the possibility to force the browser via the settings to show the images in their original size if they are
Thumbnail Upscale Reviews
Still works
That was a pleasant surprise. Still works and did a good job upscaling the image thumbnails.
It’s still relevant god damn it
Whaaaaat? You don’t use this plugin? It’s good.
Not working 100% anymore
I’ve been using this great plugin for a number of years with no problems. It still works for some images but I have been getting blank images returned. I believe it’s something to do with the srcset p
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Frequently Asked Questions
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Plugin data sourced from WordPress.org. Comparison and analysis by PluginSift.