Events Manager – Calendar, Bookings… vs Explara Lite (2026)
Detailed side-by-side comparison of two WordPress plugins, based on real-time data from WordPress.org.
Events Manager – Calendar, Bookings…
70K+ active installs
Free
Quick Verdict
As of April 2026, Events Manager – Calendar, Bookings… has a higher user rating (4.2/5 from 540 reviews) and leads in active installations (70K+ vs 10). Both are free WordPress plugins. Events Manager – Calendar, Bookings… has accumulated 6.0M+ total downloads while Explara Lite has 1.4K+.
Detailed Comparison
| Metric | Events Manager – Calendar, Bookings… | Explara Lite | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rating | 4.2/5 | ◄ | N/A |
| Total Reviews | 540 | ◄ | 0 |
| Active Installs | 70K+ | ◄ | 10 |
| Total Downloads | 6.0M+ | ◄ | 1.4K+ |
| Support Resolution | 5% | N/A | |
| Last Updated | 3 months ago | ◄ | 6 years ago |
| First Released | 2008 | 2018 | |
| Age | 18 years | 8 years | |
| WP Requires | 6.1+ | 4.6+ | |
| PHP Requires | 7.0+ | false+ | |
| Business Model | Free | Free | |
| Latest Version | 7.2.3.1 | 0.1.3 |
Rating Breakdown
Events Manager – Calendar, Bookings…
Explara Lite
Download Trends
Recent Reviews
Events Manager – Calendar, Bookings… Reviews
Calendar month picker breaks with non-English locales (fix inside)
The plugin is very powerful and flexible, but I ran into a critical issue with the calendar month picker when using a non-English locale (e.g. French). After an AJAX reload of the calendar, the sel
Free, feature-rich & costomizable
Best free feature set, very customizable, works great.
Purchasing PRO not possible
I have a FREE version of the plug-in running on an active site. So far everything works fine, but now the customer decided to show past events as well. This feature is only available in the PRO versio
Explara Lite Reviews
No reviews yet
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Frequently Asked Questions
Is Events Manager – Calendar, Bookings… or Explara Lite more popular?
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Plugin data sourced from WordPress.org. Comparison and analysis by PluginSift.