Elementor Beta (Developer Edition) vs Smart Slider 3
Compare WordPress plugins and tools side by side. Pick products with “Compare” in the software directory.
| Feature | Elementor Beta (Developer Edition) v1.1.4 · checked 23 Oct 2026 Free · ★ 5.0/5 Visit Details | Smart Slider 3 v3.5.1.39 · checked 23 Oct 2026 Free + paid · ★ 4.9/5 Visit Details |
|---|---|---|
| At a glance | ||
| Active installs | 30,000+ | 800,000+ |
| Last updated | March 4, 2025 | August 19, 2026 |
| Editions | Elementor Beta (Developer Edition) | Smart Slider 3 · Smart Slider 3 Pro ($) |
| Pros | Switch between Elementor core and Pro versions; Test development releases before stable; Usage tracking is a separate opt-in choice | Visual layer editor with rows and columns; Works with many page builders and themes; Free edition covers core slider types |
| Cons | Development releases contain experimental changes by design; Version switching depends on WordPress.org release data | Premium sliders and templates need Pro; Template import calls the vendor API; Large plugin with many admin screens to learn |
| Mentioned in our posts | — | 1 |
| More features | ||
| Other features | Switch Elementor core version, Switch Elementor Pro version, Admin bar link, Developer edition settings page | Import sliders and templates from the vendor API, Find sliders used on a page by URL, Google Fonts CSS fetched and cached locally, Premium sliders need a Pro licence ($), Pro updater referenced by the free code ($) |
| Integrations | ||
| Plugins | — | Elementor, Divi, Beaver Builder, Advanced Custom Fields, WP Rocket, Rank Math, TablePress |
| Other | WordPress.org API | Smart Slider vendor API (api.nextendweb.com) |
| Requires WordPress | 5.8 | 5.0 |
| Requires PHP | 5.6 | 7.0 |
| Tested up to | 6.7 | 7.0.2 |
| Phones home | Only if you agree | No |
| External services | go.elementor.com, api.wordpress.org | fonts.googleapis.com, api.nextendweb.com |
| Blocks | — | 1 |
| Shortcodes | — | 2 |