PluginSift

Shadowbox JS vs CTC Masonry Gallery 🎨 (2026)

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

Shadowbox JS

Shadowbox JS

4.6(9)

2.0K+ active installs

Free

Updated 8 years ago
View Shadowbox JS
VS
CTC Masonry Gallery 🎨

CTC Masonry Gallery 🎨

5(3)

1.0K+ active installs

Free

Updated 1 week ago
View CTC Masonry Gallery 🎨

Quick Verdict

As of April 2026, CTC Masonry Gallery 🎨 has a higher user rating (5/5 from 3 reviews) while Shadowbox JS leads in active installations (2.0K+ vs 1.0K+). Both are free WordPress plugins. Shadowbox JS has accumulated 533K+ total downloads while CTC Masonry Gallery 🎨 has 13K+.

Detailed Comparison

Rating
4.6/5Shadowbox JS
►
CTC Masonry Gallery 🎨5/5
Total Reviews
9Shadowbox JS
◄
CTC Masonry Gallery 🎨3
Active Installs
2.0K+Shadowbox JS
◄
CTC Masonry Gallery 🎨1.0K+
Total Downloads
533K+Shadowbox JS
◄
CTC Masonry Gallery 🎨13K+
Support Resolution
N/AShadowbox JS
CTC Masonry Gallery 🎨N/A
Last Updated
8 years agoShadowbox JS
►
CTC Masonry Gallery 🎨1 week ago
First Released
2008Shadowbox JS
CTC Masonry Gallery 🎨2021
Age
18 yearsShadowbox JS
CTC Masonry Gallery 🎨5 years
WP Requires
3.3+Shadowbox JS
CTC Masonry Gallery 🎨5.8+
PHP Requires
false+Shadowbox JS
CTC Masonry Gallery 🎨7.4.9+
Business Model
FreeShadowbox JS
CTC Masonry Gallery 🎨Free
Latest Version
3.0.3.10.2Shadowbox JS
CTC Masonry Gallery 🎨2.7.0

Rating Breakdown

Shadowbox JS

4.6/5(9 reviews)
5
89%
4
0%
3
0%
2
0%
1
11%

CTC Masonry Gallery 🎨

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

Recent Reviews

Shadowbox JS Reviews

by Suzi Berman

Love this and use on all my sites

Love this and use on all my sites

by Salpetriere

PHP Errors, No Recent Updates, No Support

It appears that the plugin author has abandoned supporting this plugin, it hasn’t been updated in four years. The plugin is now creating php errors with that latest few versions of WordPress. This was

by ezejaime

Best modal window plugin

I started to use shadowbox js years ago, first in my plain html and php websites and now with WordPress in its plugin version. I’m sad the creators decided to stop supporting and updating it but I und

CTC Masonry Gallery 🎨 Reviews

by beatty67

Easy & Elegant – Works Great

SO this plugin makes really nice masonry galleries with a little hover effect that’s elegant looking and responsive and a complete pleasure to use for certain projects. I have clients who want this fe

by Sanjeev Aryal

Great Gallery

beautiful masonry image galleries

by txirrindulari24

Easy, Drag and drop Gallery

I like so much the way it can set the order of image, so easy to change them. Nice to use. Still it can improve certain aspects.The developer responds quickly. Thanks for your help! Good Plugin!

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Shadowbox JS or CTC Masonry Gallery 🎨 more popular?
Shadowbox JS has 2.0K+ active installations while CTC Masonry Gallery 🎨 has 1.0K+. Shadowbox JS is the more widely-used plugin as of April 2026.
Which has better ratings — Shadowbox JS or CTC Masonry Gallery 🎨?
Shadowbox JS has a 4.6/5 rating from 9 reviews, while CTC Masonry Gallery 🎨 has a 5/5 rating from 3 reviews.
Are Shadowbox JS and CTC Masonry Gallery 🎨 free?
Shadowbox JS is free and CTC Masonry Gallery 🎨 is free. Both can be downloaded from the WordPress.org plugin directory.
Which plugin has better support — Shadowbox JS or CTC Masonry Gallery 🎨?
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?
Shadowbox JS was last updated 8 years ago and CTC Masonry Gallery 🎨 was last updated 1 week ago.

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