PluginSift

Force Refresh vs Live Auto Refresh (Hot Reload / Live… (2026)

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

Force Refresh

Force Refresh

5(12)

4.0K+ active installs

Free

Updated 3 weeks ago
View Force Refresh
VS
Live Auto Refresh (Hot Reload / Live…

Live Auto Refresh (Hot Reload / Live…

4.3(6)

100 active installs

Free

Updated 8 months ago
View Live Auto Refresh (Hot Reload / Live…

Quick Verdict

As of April 2026, Force Refresh has a higher user rating (5/5 from 12 reviews) and leads in active installations (4.0K+ vs 100). Both are free WordPress plugins. Force Refresh has accumulated 131K+ total downloads while Live Auto Refresh (Hot Reload / Live… has 5.8K+.

Detailed Comparison

Rating
5/5Force Refresh
◄
Live Auto Refresh (Hot Reload / Live…4.3/5
Total Reviews
12Force Refresh
◄
Live Auto Refresh (Hot Reload / Live…6
Active Installs
4.0K+Force Refresh
◄
Live Auto Refresh (Hot Reload / Live…100
Total Downloads
131K+Force Refresh
◄
Live Auto Refresh (Hot Reload / Live…5.8K+
Support Resolution
50%Force Refresh
Live Auto Refresh (Hot Reload / Live…N/A
Last Updated
3 weeks agoForce Refresh
◄
Live Auto Refresh (Hot Reload / Live…8 months ago
First Released
2017Force Refresh
Live Auto Refresh (Hot Reload / Live…2023
Age
9 yearsForce Refresh
Live Auto Refresh (Hot Reload / Live…3 years
WP Requires
6.3+Force Refresh
Live Auto Refresh (Hot Reload / Live…4.7+
PHP Requires
8.2+Force Refresh
Live Auto Refresh (Hot Reload / Live…7.0+
Business Model
FreeForce Refresh
Live Auto Refresh (Hot Reload / Live…Free
Latest Version
2.16.1Force Refresh
Live Auto Refresh (Hot Reload / Live…3.2.1

Rating Breakdown

Force Refresh

5/5(12 reviews)
5
100%
4
0%
3
0%
2
0%
1
0%

Live Auto Refresh (Hot Reload / Live…

4.3/5(6 reviews)
5
83%
4
0%
3
0%
2
0%
1
17%

Recent Reviews

Force Refresh Reviews

by Jack Climax

Works perfectly

Best Plugin to remotely refresh all without disabling or clearing CDN caches

by laserstore

Fantastic plugin and support!

Excellent tool and amazing support! Thanks for the great work with the community!

by stv11c

Works well

Nice Plugin, thank you! It would be great to have a few more visibility settings in the Tools > Force Refresh section. For example, show/hide for Posts, Pages, CPTs. I have hidden it on Posts from the

Live Auto Refresh (Hot Reload / Live… Reviews

No reviews yet

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Force Refresh or Live Auto Refresh (Hot Reload / Live… more popular?
Force Refresh has 4.0K+ active installations while Live Auto Refresh (Hot Reload / Live… has 100. Force Refresh is the more widely-used plugin as of April 2026.
Which has better ratings — Force Refresh or Live Auto Refresh (Hot Reload / Live…?
Force Refresh has a 5/5 rating from 12 reviews, while Live Auto Refresh (Hot Reload / Live… has a 4.3/5 rating from 6 reviews.
Are Force Refresh and Live Auto Refresh (Hot Reload / Live… free?
Force Refresh is free and Live Auto Refresh (Hot Reload / Live… is free. Both can be downloaded from the WordPress.org plugin directory.
Which plugin has better support — Force Refresh or Live Auto Refresh (Hot Reload / Live…?
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?
Force Refresh was last updated 3 weeks ago and Live Auto Refresh (Hot Reload / Live… was last updated 8 months ago.

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