Elementor vs Essential Blocks
Compare WordPress plugins and tools side by side. Pick products with “Compare” in the software directory.
| Feature | Elementor v4.3.5 · checked 23 Oct 2026 Free + paid · ★ 4.5/5 Visit Details | Essential Blocks v6.5.1 · checked 23 Oct 2026 Free + paid · ★ 4.9/5 Visit Details |
|---|---|---|
| At a glance | ||
| Active installs | 10M+ | 200,000+ |
| Last updated | October 13, 2026 | October 19, 2026 |
| Editions | Elementor · Elementor Pro ($) | Essential Blocks · Essential Blocks Pro ($) |
| Pros | Drag and drop editing with global styles and kit settings; Reusable components and nested layouts; Usage tracking is opt-in and off by default | Large block library with patterns for the block editor; WooCommerce product grid and add-to-cart blocks; Works within the standard WordPress block editor |
| Cons | Forms, theme builder and popups need the Pro edition; Large plugin with many modules and admin screens; Some AI features prompt for upgrade or credits | Several blocks and features are marked PRO; Feed and AI blocks call third-party services and need keys or accounts |
| Mentioned in our posts | 3 | — |
| More features | ||
| Other features | Visual page editor, Kit with global site settings and styles, REST routes for editor documents, Responsive frontend styles, Site editor for templates, Reusable components, Global classes, Nested tabs and accordion widgets, Opt-in usage tracking | Block library registered from block.json files, WooCommerce product grid and add-to-cart blocks, Fluent Forms block, NFT gallery block fed by OpenSea, Openverse image search block, AI features through an OpenAI API key, Pro-only blocks and conditions flagged is_pro ($) |
| Integrations | ||
| Analytics | — | WP Insights usage tracker (opt-in) |
| Social | YouTube and Vimeo | Facebook Graph API, Instagram Graph API |
| E-commerce | — | WooCommerce |
| Plugins | — | Fluent Forms |
| Other | Elementor usage tracking API | Google Maps API, OpenSea API, Openverse API, OpenAI API, Templately |
| Requires WordPress | 6.8 | 5.8 |
| Requires PHP | 7.4 | 7.4 |
| Tested up to | 7.1 | 7.1 |
| Phones home | Only if you agree | Only if you agree |
| External services | my.elementor.com, ms-8874.elementor.com, assets.elementor.com, go.elementor.com, elementor.com, api-eu.mixpanel.com, cdn.mxpnl.com, editor.elementor.com, assets.stg.elementor.red, assets.dev.builder.elementor.red, plugins.svn.wordpress.org | graph.facebook.com, graph.instagram.com, maps.googleapis.com, app.templately.com, api.opensea.io, api.openverse.org, api.openai.com, send.wpinsight.com |
| Blocks | — | 60 |
| Shortcodes | 1 | — |