Simple:Press vs Vanilla Forums
Compare WordPress plugins and tools side by side. Pick products with “Compare” in the software directory.
| Feature | Simple:Press v6.11.15 · checked 23 Oct 2026 Free + paid · ★ 4.2/5 Visit Details | Vanilla Forums v1.3.1 · checked 23 Oct 2026 Free · ★ 2.8/5 Visit Details |
|---|---|---|
| At a glance | ||
| Active installs | 300+ | 100+ |
| Last updated | September 17, 2026 | July 3, 2020 |
| Editions | Simple:Press · Simple:Press Pro ($) | Vanilla Forums |
| Pros | Forums and subforums run inside WordPress; Uses WordPress users and a user group system; Topic moderation tools in the admin | Embeds the forum or replaces blog comments with forum threads; Forum widgets for discussions, activity and active users; Single sign-on through jsConnect |
| Cons | Many features such as messaging and polls need the paid Pro bundle; Add-ons need a licence key entered in the admin; Pro features arrive as separate add-on downloads | Needs a Vanilla forum, hosted or self-hosted, to connect to; Last tested with WordPress 5.3 per the readme; Replaces native comments once a forum URL is set |
| Mentioned in our posts | 1 | 1 |
| More features | ||
| Other features | User groups admin panel, Topic lock and unlock moderation tools, Email a user from the admin tools, Spoiler shortcode, Forum statistics computed on the site, Theme update checks from the admin panel, Pro add-on updates via licence key ($), Daily add-on status check ($) | Embed the Vanilla forum inside a WordPress page, Replace native blog comments with Vanilla threads, Discussion, activity and active-user widgets, Single sign-on with jsConnect, Choose forum category for embedded content and widgets |
| Integrations | ||
| Plugins | Yoast SEO | — |
| Other | Simple:Press add-on licence server ($), Simple:Press news feed | Vanilla Forums |
| Requires WordPress | 5.7 | 3 |
| Requires PHP | 7.0 | — |
| Tested up to | 7.1 | 5.3 |
| Phones home | No | No |
| External services | simple-press.com | — |
| Shortcodes | 1 | — |