Image Widget vs Sidebar Shortcode (2026)
Detailed side-by-side comparison of two WordPress plugins, based on real-time data from WordPress.org.
Quick Verdict
As of April 2026, Sidebar Shortcode has a higher user rating (5/5 from 3 reviews) while Image Widget leads in active installations (100K+ vs 1.0K+). Both are free WordPress plugins. Image Widget has accumulated 4.6M+ total downloads while Sidebar Shortcode has 8.5K+.
Detailed Comparison
| Metric | Image Widget | Sidebar Shortcode | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rating | 4.9/5 | ► | 5/5 |
| Total Reviews | 287 | ◄ | 3 |
| Active Installs | 100K+ | ◄ | 1.0K+ |
| Total Downloads | 4.6M+ | ◄ | 8.5K+ |
| Support Resolution | N/A | N/A | |
| Last Updated | 1 year ago | ◄ | 4 years ago |
| First Released | 2008 | 2018 | |
| Age | 18 years | 8 years | |
| WP Requires | 3.5+ | 3.4+ | |
| PHP Requires | false+ | false+ | |
| Business Model | Free | Free | |
| Latest Version | 4.4.11 | 1.0.0 |
Rating Breakdown
Image Widget
Sidebar Shortcode
Download Trends
Over the past 30 days, Image Widget averaged approximately 131 daily downloads while Sidebar Shortcode averaged 4.
Recent Reviews
Image Widget Reviews
Perfect image widget
This is perfect image widget. Thank you very much for such helpful solution.
Very nice, working great
I like this image widget plugin, certainly better than the default one, also works with some external lightbox plugins, so that’s a bonus. Also, it works without a problem on WordPress v5.4.2.
Very nice plugin
This is very nice plugin! Thank you for your work! Everything work fast without any problems.
Sidebar Shortcode Reviews
Works Great!
This works really great! Exactly what I needed. Could you please make this for Blog Posts too? I just want to pull my blog posts, exactly as they are created, on to a “page”. Thanks for creating the s
Works wonderful
Works wonderful with siteorigin html sidebar. I just used the code [sidebar name='Sidebar'] This topic was modified 6 years, 11 months ago by Marlimant. This topic was modified 6 years,
It’s working!
Very good and simple plugin!
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Frequently Asked Questions
Is Image Widget or Sidebar Shortcode more popular?
Which has better ratings — Image Widget or Sidebar Shortcode?
Are Image Widget and Sidebar Shortcode free?
Which plugin has better support — Image Widget or Sidebar Shortcode?
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Plugin data sourced from WordPress.org. Comparison and analysis by PluginSift.