bbPress vs BuddyPress
Compare WordPress plugins and tools side by side. Pick products with “Compare” in the software directory.
| Feature | bbPress v2.6.20 · checked 23 Oct 2026 Free · ★ 3.9/5 Visit Details | BuddyPress v14.5.4 · checked 23 Oct 2026 Free · ★ 4.1/5 Visit Details |
|---|---|---|
| At a glance | ||
| Active installs | 100,000+ | 90,000+ |
| Last updated | October 15, 2026 | October 23, 2026 |
| Editions | bbPress | BuddyPress |
| Pros | Free and open source, from the WordPress contributors; Uses WordPress users and roles, and works with BuddyPress | Free and open source with a large add-on ecosystem; Member profiles, groups, activity and messages in one plugin; Blocks and admin tools for building community pages |
| Cons | Lean feature set compared with dedicated community suites; Forum styling depends on the theme | Many features to configure before a site feels finished; Heavy database footprint with many custom tables; Needs theme and add-on work for a polished front end |
| Mentioned in our posts | 1 | 1 |
| More features | ||
| Other features | Forum, topic, reply and stats widgets, Login widget, Akismet spam checking for posts, BuddyPress activity integration, Theme compatibility layer | Member profiles with extended profile fields, Activity streams, Groups with membership management, Private messages between members, Friendships between members, On-site notifications, Member sign-up and activation, Akismet spam checks on activity posts |
| Integrations | ||
| Plugins | Akismet, BuddyPress | bbPress |
| Other | — | Akismet |
| Requires WordPress | 6.0 | 6.1 |
| Requires PHP | 7.2 | 5.6 |
| Tested up to | 7.1 | 7.0 |
| Phones home | No | No |
| Blocks | — | 15 |
| Custom tables | — | 19 |