WP Mail SMTP by WPForms – The Most… vs Contact Form 7 Email Validation (2026)

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

WP Mail SMTP by WPForms – The Most…

WP Mail SMTP by WPForms – The Most…

4.8(5,089)

4.0M+ active installs

Free

Updated 4 months ago
View WP Mail SMTP by WPForms – The Most…
VS
Contact Form 7 Email Validation

Contact Form 7 Email Validation

3.3(10)

1.0K+ active installs

Free

Updated 5 years ago
View Contact Form 7 Email Validation

Quick Verdict

As of April 2026, WP Mail SMTP by WPForms – The Most… has a higher user rating (4.8/5 from 5,089 reviews) and leads in active installations (4.0M+ vs 1.0K+). Both are free WordPress plugins. WP Mail SMTP by WPForms – The Most… has accumulated 76M+ total downloads while Contact Form 7 Email Validation has 26K+.

Detailed Comparison

Rating
4.8/5WP Mail SMTP by WPForms – The Most…
Contact Form 7 Email Validation3.3/5
Total Reviews
5,089WP Mail SMTP by WPForms – The Most…
Contact Form 7 Email Validation10
Active Installs
4.0M+WP Mail SMTP by WPForms – The Most…
Contact Form 7 Email Validation1.0K+
Total Downloads
76M+WP Mail SMTP by WPForms – The Most…
Contact Form 7 Email Validation26K+
Support Resolution
88%WP Mail SMTP by WPForms – The Most…
Contact Form 7 Email ValidationN/A
Last Updated
4 months agoWP Mail SMTP by WPForms – The Most…
Contact Form 7 Email Validation5 years ago
First Released
2007WP Mail SMTP by WPForms – The Most…
Contact Form 7 Email Validation2016
Age
19 yearsWP Mail SMTP by WPForms – The Most…
Contact Form 7 Email Validation10 years
WP Requires
5.5+WP Mail SMTP by WPForms – The Most…
Contact Form 7 Email Validation4.9+
PHP Requires
7.4+WP Mail SMTP by WPForms – The Most…
Contact Form 7 Email Validationfalse+
Business Model
FreeWP Mail SMTP by WPForms – The Most…
Contact Form 7 Email ValidationFree
Latest Version
4.7.1WP Mail SMTP by WPForms – The Most…
Contact Form 7 Email Validation3.5.2

Rating Breakdown

WP Mail SMTP by WPForms – The Most…

4.8/5(5,089 reviews)
5
94%
4
1%
3
1%
2
1%
1
3%

Contact Form 7 Email Validation

3.3/5(10 reviews)
5
50%
4
10%
3
0%
2
0%
1
40%

Recent Reviews

WP Mail SMTP by WPForms – The Most… Reviews

by marenaso

Great plugin!

Easy to install and configure. Works like a charm!

by dome0013

Love it

easy and reliable

by janell12

Does the Job, Needs Improvement

WP Mail SMTP by WPForms works well for email delivery, with easy setup. However, it lacks some advanced features and customization. 4 stars! This topic was modified 2 days, 1 hour ago by janel

Contact Form 7 Email Validation Reviews

by slinkys

Unsupported and abandoned.

Does not work, this plugin is unsupported.

by Toxic

Plugin doing email fields are require

Nice solution. Plugin doing email fields are require. Thanks author for added translation option.

by Asger Kennedy

Works as of Sep.2020 in WordPress 5.5.1

I just wish it was possibly to translate the error message from English to locale, as described here: https://wordpress.org/support/topic/plugin-translation-ready/ This topic was modified 5 ye

Frequently Asked Questions

Is WP Mail SMTP by WPForms – The Most… or Contact Form 7 Email Validation more popular?
WP Mail SMTP by WPForms – The Most… has 4.0M+ active installations while Contact Form 7 Email Validation has 1.0K+. WP Mail SMTP by WPForms – The Most… is the more widely-used plugin as of April 2026.
Which has better ratings — WP Mail SMTP by WPForms – The Most… or Contact Form 7 Email Validation?
WP Mail SMTP by WPForms – The Most… has a 4.8/5 rating from 5,089 reviews, while Contact Form 7 Email Validation has a 3.3/5 rating from 10 reviews.
Are WP Mail SMTP by WPForms – The Most… and Contact Form 7 Email Validation free?
WP Mail SMTP by WPForms – The Most… is free and Contact Form 7 Email Validation is free. Both can be downloaded from the WordPress.org plugin directory.
Which plugin has better support — WP Mail SMTP by WPForms – The Most… or Contact Form 7 Email Validation?
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?
WP Mail SMTP by WPForms – The Most… was last updated 4 months ago and Contact Form 7 Email Validation was last updated 5 years ago.

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