FancyBox vs fancyBox 3 for WordPress (2026)

Detailed side-by-side comparison of two WordPress plugins, based on real-time data from WordPress.org.

FancyBox

FancyBox

2.8(9)

4.0K+ active installs

Free

Updated 8 years ago
View FancyBox
VS
fancyBox 3 for WordPress

fancyBox 3 for WordPress

4.9(7)

1.0K+ active installs

Free

Updated 2 years ago
View fancyBox 3 for WordPress

Quick Verdict

As of April 2026, fancyBox 3 for WordPress has a higher user rating (4.9/5 from 7 reviews) while FancyBox leads in active installations (4.0K+ vs 1.0K+). Both are free WordPress plugins. FancyBox has accumulated 286K+ total downloads while fancyBox 3 for WordPress has 15K+.

Detailed Comparison

Rating
2.8/5FancyBox
fancyBox 3 for WordPress4.9/5
Total Reviews
9FancyBox
fancyBox 3 for WordPress7
Active Installs
4.0K+FancyBox
fancyBox 3 for WordPress1.0K+
Total Downloads
286K+FancyBox
fancyBox 3 for WordPress15K+
Support Resolution
N/AFancyBox
fancyBox 3 for WordPressN/A
Last Updated
8 years agoFancyBox
fancyBox 3 for WordPress2 years ago
First Released
2009FancyBox
fancyBox 3 for WordPress2017
Age
17 yearsFancyBox
fancyBox 3 for WordPress9 years
WP Requires
2.7+FancyBox
fancyBox 3 for WordPress3.4+
PHP Requires
false+FancyBox
fancyBox 3 for WordPressfalse+
Business Model
FreeFancyBox
fancyBox 3 for WordPressFree
Latest Version
1.1.0FancyBox
fancyBox 3 for WordPress1.2.4

Rating Breakdown

FancyBox

2.8/5(9 reviews)
5
44%
4
0%
3
0%
2
0%
1
56%

fancyBox 3 for WordPress

4.9/5(7 reviews)
5
86%
4
14%
3
0%
2
0%
1
0%

Recent Reviews

FancyBox Reviews

by Broken Ninja

straight pulldown of fancbox

Loved it as a developer as it has nothing but a plain fancybox.

by SiD

Good One

Good Plugin. I Use it in my site

by uzcant

It works well

No problem, it works as it says and this is fairly enough.

fancyBox 3 for WordPress Reviews

by richardjamesw

The Best – Only one with Zoom Function!

Seems to be the only Fancybox plugin with an option for click to zoom after lighbox has popped up. So glad I finally found one that works! Rich

by abcdefghijklmnop

What a disaster (updated)

Works out of the box upon activation with latest version of WordPress (June 2018). Edit: Captions don’t work. 1-2 days after installation, my slider stopped working. I then opened my site in Microsoft

by makissm21

Super plugin

Thanks for the job.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is FancyBox or fancyBox 3 for WordPress more popular?
FancyBox has 4.0K+ active installations while fancyBox 3 for WordPress has 1.0K+. FancyBox is the more widely-used plugin as of April 2026.
Which has better ratings — FancyBox or fancyBox 3 for WordPress?
FancyBox has a 2.8/5 rating from 9 reviews, while fancyBox 3 for WordPress has a 4.9/5 rating from 7 reviews.
Are FancyBox and fancyBox 3 for WordPress free?
FancyBox is free and fancyBox 3 for WordPress is free. Both can be downloaded from the WordPress.org plugin directory.
Which plugin has better support — FancyBox or fancyBox 3 for WordPress?
Support resolution data is not available for all plugins. Check each plugin's WordPress.org support forum for current response quality.
Which plugin is updated more frequently?
FancyBox was last updated 8 years ago and fancyBox 3 for WordPress was last updated 2 years ago.

Plugin data sourced from WordPress.org. Comparison and analysis by PluginSift.