Firelight Lightbox vs WP Colorbox (2026)
Detailed side-by-side comparison of two WordPress plugins, based on real-time data from WordPress.org.
Firelight Lightbox
200K+ active installs
Free + Premium
Quick Verdict
As of April 2026, Firelight Lightbox has a higher user rating (4.8/5 from 331 reviews) and leads in active installations (200K+ vs 5.0K+). Both are free + premium WordPress plugins. Firelight Lightbox has accumulated 7.6M+ total downloads while WP Colorbox has 154K+.
Detailed Comparison
| Metric | Firelight Lightbox | WP Colorbox | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rating | 4.8/5 | ◄ | 4.3/5 |
| Total Reviews | 331 | ◄ | 23 |
| Active Installs | 200K+ | ◄ | 5.0K+ |
| Total Downloads | 7.6M+ | ◄ | 154K+ |
| Support Resolution | 43% | N/A | |
| Last Updated | 3 weeks ago | ◄ | 7 months ago |
| First Released | 2010 | 2014 | |
| Age | 16 years | 12 years | |
| WP Requires | 5.0+ | 3.0+ | |
| PHP Requires | 7.0+ | false+ | |
| Business Model | Free + Premium | Free | |
| Latest Version | 2.3.19 | 1.1.6 |
Rating Breakdown
Firelight Lightbox
WP Colorbox
Download Trends
Over the past 30 days, Firelight Lightbox averaged approximately 3,084 daily downloads while WP Colorbox averaged 15.
Recent Reviews
Firelight Lightbox Reviews
Very good
Recommend
Doesn’t work with sunshine photo cart
I’m using the gallery Plugin “sunshine photo cart” and it does not convert image links into a lightbox gallery. I am sick of using/adjusting 5 different lightbox plugins, because every gallery uses it
Increases the value of a photo blog
The plugin works perfect and with a beautiful, but discreet animation. I’d prefer having the possibility to force the browser via the settings to show the images in their original size if they are
WP Colorbox Reviews
Best flexible lightbox on the market
I use the colorbox lightbox for many years in my projects and for me it´s still the best lightbox plugin on the market. Its easy to use and very flexible in functionality and design. Really great job.
Great Text solution
I was looking for a pop-up text solution. This fit it great.
Firefox
Very good but it is not running on firefox and ms edge
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Frequently Asked Questions
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Plugin data sourced from WordPress.org. Comparison and analysis by PluginSift.