Hide/Remove Metadata vs Starbox – the Author Box for Humans (2026)
Detailed side-by-side comparison of two WordPress plugins, based on real-time data from WordPress.org.
Starbox – the Author Box for Humans
10K+ active installs
Free
Quick Verdict
As of April 2026, Starbox – the Author Box for Humans has a higher user rating (4.5/5 from 203 reviews) while Hide/Remove Metadata leads in active installations (20K+ vs 10K+). Both are free WordPress plugins. Hide/Remove Metadata has accumulated 292K+ total downloads while Starbox – the Author Box for Humans has 518K+.
Detailed Comparison
| Metric | Hide/Remove Metadata | Starbox – the Author Box for Humans | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rating | 3.6/5 | ► | 4.5/5 |
| Total Reviews | 14 | ► | 203 |
| Active Installs | 20K+ | ◄ | 10K+ |
| Total Downloads | 292K+ | ► | 518K+ |
| Support Resolution | N/A | 100% | |
| Last Updated | 3 weeks ago | ◄ | 11 months ago |
| First Released | 2019 | 2013 | |
| Age | 7 years | 13 years | |
| WP Requires | 5.9+ | 4.6+ | |
| PHP Requires | false+ | 7.0+ | |
| Business Model | Free | Free | |
| Latest Version | 2.0 | 3.5.4 |
Rating Breakdown
Hide/Remove Metadata
Starbox – the Author Box for Humans
Download Trends
Over the past 30 days, Hide/Remove Metadata averaged approximately 510 daily downloads while Starbox – the Author Box for Humans averaged 29.
Recent Reviews
Hide/Remove Metadata Reviews
Doesn’t do anything at all
Does nothing in css or php. Useless.
Did not work using the CSS options, but the PHP option worked well
The CSS option didn’t do anything for my site, but when I selected the PHP option, it removed the date as it was supposed to. It has an option to remove the author too, but I didn’t try that as I d
Working fine on WordPress 6.1.1
PHP option remove the icon as well, working fine on WordPress 6.1.1
Starbox – the Author Box for Humans Reviews
Seems not compatible with WPML
I love that plugin, but I’ll probably have to switch to another solution since I’d like to go multilingual. Unfortunately, Starbox doesn’t seem to be compatible with WPML. That’s unfortunate for Starb
Pleasant and efficient.
Pleasant and efficient. Many thanks to the developers. Works well with php 8.1 and wp 6.2. Better than other free plugins 😉
Very good support
Fisrt time that I see such a simple plugin to use, very convenient and easy for the settings. But the support is fantastic. I wanted to tweak a little bit, and immediately I received all the solutions
More Author Worth Comparing
Top alternatives in the same category as Hide/Remove Metadata and Starbox – the Author Box for Humans
Allows an admin (or capable user) to edit the author slug of a user, and change the author base.
Remove meta author and date information from posts and pages. Hide from Humans and Search engines.SEO friendly and most advance plugin.
Disable Author Archives completely removes author archives and makes the web server return status code 404 ('Not Found') instead.
Display to Post Author Information Box on bottom of the contents.
Easily display your author/user profile info inside WordPress widget.
Don't need the post date and author meta data on your pages? Install WP Author, Date and Meta Remover and its gone. It's that easy!
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Hide/Remove Metadata or Starbox – the Author Box for Humans more popular?
Which has better ratings — Hide/Remove Metadata or Starbox – the Author Box for Humans?
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Plugin data sourced from WordPress.org. Comparison and analysis by PluginSift.