PluginSift

Pure Metafields vs Categories Metabox Enhanced (2026)

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

Pure Metafields

Pure Metafields

4.3(6)

10K+ active installs

Free

Updated 2 months ago
View Pure Metafields
VS
Categories Metabox Enhanced

Categories Metabox Enhanced

4.9(16)

1.0K+ active installs

Free

Updated 5 years ago
View Categories Metabox Enhanced

Quick Verdict

As of April 2026, Categories Metabox Enhanced has a higher user rating (4.9/5 from 16 reviews) while Pure Metafields leads in active installations (10K+ vs 1.0K+). Both are free WordPress plugins. Pure Metafields has accumulated 65K+ total downloads while Categories Metabox Enhanced has 17K+.

Detailed Comparison

Rating
4.3/5Pure Metafields
►
Categories Metabox Enhanced4.9/5
Total Reviews
6Pure Metafields
►
Categories Metabox Enhanced16
Active Installs
10K+Pure Metafields
◄
Categories Metabox Enhanced1.0K+
Total Downloads
65K+Pure Metafields
◄
Categories Metabox Enhanced17K+
Support Resolution
N/APure Metafields
Categories Metabox EnhancedN/A
Last Updated
2 months agoPure Metafields
◄
Categories Metabox Enhanced5 years ago
First Released
2023Pure Metafields
Categories Metabox Enhanced2014
Age
3 yearsPure Metafields
Categories Metabox Enhanced12 years
WP Requires
5.6+Pure Metafields
Categories Metabox Enhanced3.5+
PHP Requires
8.0+Pure Metafields
Categories Metabox Enhancedfalse+
Business Model
FreePure Metafields
Categories Metabox EnhancedFree
Latest Version
1.4.8Pure Metafields
Categories Metabox Enhanced0.7.1

Rating Breakdown

Pure Metafields

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

Categories Metabox Enhanced

4.9/5(16 reviews)
5
88%
4
13%
3
0%
2
0%
1
0%

Recent Reviews

Pure Metafields Reviews

by Suhag Ahmed

Best Features

The Pure Metafields plugin significantly enhances efficiency by saving valuable time.

by rana271199

Fantastic Plugin – Easy, Fast, and Super Helpful!

Fantastic Plugin – Easy, Fast, and Super Helpful! Pure Metafields is an amazing plugin! It has made my workflow much easier and faster. Everything is well-organized, simple to understand, and very

by Yasin Sarkar

Super Easy and Lightweight

It’s super easy to use and incredibly lightweight

Categories Metabox Enhanced Reviews

by niel

Perfect!

This plugin is perfect it saves me to create a CMS because of enforcing select only one category every post! . . Thanks, Author :))

by leymannx

Almost perfect even in Gutenberg

Clever solution IMHO that this plugin simply replaces the default meta boxes with its own. Unfortunately in WP 5 Gutenberg the default category / taxonomy meta boxes still are visible.

by tatof

Perfect plugin

This plugin is easy to use and just works 🙂 Replace checkboxes for radios! FTW

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Pure Metafields or Categories Metabox Enhanced more popular?
Pure Metafields has 10K+ active installations while Categories Metabox Enhanced has 1.0K+. Pure Metafields is the more widely-used plugin as of April 2026.
Which has better ratings — Pure Metafields or Categories Metabox Enhanced?
Pure Metafields has a 4.3/5 rating from 6 reviews, while Categories Metabox Enhanced has a 4.9/5 rating from 16 reviews.
Are Pure Metafields and Categories Metabox Enhanced free?
Pure Metafields is free and Categories Metabox Enhanced is free. Both can be downloaded from the WordPress.org plugin directory.
Which plugin has better support — Pure Metafields or Categories Metabox Enhanced?
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?
Pure Metafields was last updated 2 months ago and Categories Metabox Enhanced was last updated 5 years ago.

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