Smart Slider 3

Reviewers keep praising Smart Slider 3 for its ease of use and device-responsive design, with just one isolated complaint about rigid height scaling on mobile.

How well this listing is tuned to rank in WordPress.org search, on the factors an owner controls. Not popularity, optimization.

Directory searches this plugin turns up in, and which way each one is moving. WordPress.org publishes no history of search positions, so this starts the day we first tracked a keyword and never backfills.

wp.org is where the directory puts the plugin for that search. On merit is where it would sit if results were ranked on rating, support and updates, without the install boost. The last column is how far the wp.org position moved, from our first reading in the last 90 days to the latest.

987 searches this plugin appeared in over the last 90 days, 20 listed. 831 left out as unrelated or noise (years, numbers, stray words). 1 of its tags isn't in the top 24 for their own search.

Directory rank vs rivals

wp.org popularity rank over time · higher is better · when a rival's line climbs above yours, they've overtaken you

How often this plugin actually ships. A steady rhythm is the maintenance signal a single "last updated" date can't show.

Share of active installs on each version of this plugin · 94% run the current release. Green is the current release; a big slice on older versions is a user base that has stopped updating.

Crossed into this band 10 months ago; a band this size takes about a year or more to cross, which places it about 50% of the way through.

1. ★★★★★ Heath Woodward

   5mo ago

   This is the best slider I have found. The free version offers a lot of flexibility and is easy to use. Deserves 6 stars. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

   Read on wp.org ↗
2. ★★★★★ zapiram

   6mo ago

   I love it, simple to use and perfect results. 100% recommended.

   Read on wp.org ↗
3. ★★★★★ denisrcekg

   8mo ago

   Данный слайдер используется на нашем сайте2 разных слайдера размещены в разных локацияхНемного придётся изучить плагин, чтобы привыкнуть и адаптировать каждый слайд к определённому типу устройств. Даже бесплатная версия изобилует достаточными функциями Плагин рекомендую!Спасибо разработчикам!

   Read on wp.org ↗
4. ★★★★★ manos555

   8mo ago

   I used Smart Slider 3 for my project and the results are amazing. I’m not a web designer, but this plugin allowed me to create beautiful, professional-looking sliders in no time.What I appreciate most is how incredibly easy it is to configure the project for every single device (mobile, tablet, desktop).5 stars for making my website shine and my life easier! ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

   Read on wp.org ↗
5. ★★★★★ vinnyrajput

   8mo ago

   I HAVE BEEN USING THIS PLUGIN FOR MULIPLE WEBSITES IT IS BEST.

   Read on wp.org ↗
6. ★★★★★ sgumby

   9mo ago

   This slider is completely useless. I have no idea how it has so many good reviews. It is completely impossible to have a slider that’s height resizes relative to the browser width. I don’t want a slider 800 px high on a 320 wide mobile phone.I even tried one of their pre-made themes for this in the hopes that it would just work and be quick and simple. I have 25 years of web development experience. That means any simple slider should never take me more than about 30 to 60 minutes to do. I now have over 3 hours in to this and I have not even come close to having something that will just work. I could have just built a javascript slider from scratch in this amount of time that worked.

   Read on wp.org ↗
7. ★★★★★ kismj615

   10mo ago

   I am new to Smart Slider 3, but I am watching tutorials on YouTube and getting the hang of it. Some of it is intuitive and some things I need help figuring out. I’m getting there, though. Thank You for a plugin for those of us that are smart, but not that smart! 🙂 LOL

   Read on wp.org ↗
8. ★★★★★ osegnitz

   12mo ago

   We have been using this on our site for 10 years now and it has proven to be reliable plugin. We only had to contact support once and the issue was resolved quickly and expertedly!

   Read on wp.org ↗

Recent releases and news for this plugin

1. — Version 3.5.1.38 Fix: Security improvements. 3.5.1.38
2. — Version 3.5.1.37 Feature: Posts Generator – we will now offer variables for tag links as well. Feature: Iframed sliders will have aria-label attribute for better accessibility. Fix: Improved compatibility with WordPress 7.0 – thumbnails 3.5.1.37
3. — Version 3.5.1.36 Fix: new version number 3.5.1.36
4. — Version 3.5.1.34 Fix: Vulnerability improvements. 3.5.1.34
5. — Version 3.5.1.33 Feature: Respect reduced motion option to allow prefers-reduced-motion setting of the operation system to turn down animations. Fix: PHP8.5 compatibility. Fix: Wrongly stored “unpublish on” values won’t be used. Fix: Vul 3.5.1.33
6. — Version 3.5.1.32 Fix: Drag and drop image uploading did not work. Fix: Iframe loaded slider code improved. Other: Black Friday notification removed. 3.5.1.32

All 13 disclosed vulnerabilities are patched in the current version (3.5.1.40). Sites still on an older version should update.

1. Patched Medium · 6.4 Smart Slider 3 <= 3.5.1.38 - Authenticated (Contributor+) Stored Cross-Site Scripting via 'data-href' Attribute in Custom HTML Block ↗
   2026-09-29 CVE-2026-14876 Improper Neutralization of Input During Web Page Generation Affects <= 3.5.1.38 Patched in 3.5.1.39
2. Patched Medium · 6.4 Smart Slider 3 <= 3.5.1.38 - Authenticated (Contributor+) Stored Cross-Site Scripting via 'slider' Block Attribute ↗
   2026-08-27 CVE-2026-15798 Improper Neutralization of Input During Web Page Generation Affects <= 3.5.1.38 Patched in 3.5.1.39
3. Patched Medium · 4.3 Smart Slider 3 <= 3.5.1.37 - Missing Authorization to Authenticated (Contributor+) Sensitive Information Exposure via WP_Query Parameter Injection via 'keyword' Parameter ↗
   2026-07-13 CVE-2026-12385 Exposure of Sensitive Information to an Unauthorized Actor Affects <= 3.5.1.37 Patched in 3.5.1.38
4. Patched Medium · 4.9 Smart Slider 3 <= 3.5.1.36 - Authenticated (Administrator+) Path Traversal to Arbitrary File Read via 'src'/'srcset' Attribute in HTML Export ↗
   2026-06-05 CVE-2026-9197 Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory Affects <= 3.5.1.36 Patched in 3.5.1.37
5. Patched Medium · 5.4 Smart Slider 3 <= 3.5.1.33 - Missing Authorization to Authenticated (Contributor+) Slider Data Read and Image Record Manipulation ↗
   2026-04-07 CVE-2026-4065 Missing Authorization Affects <= 3.5.1.33 Patched in 3.5.1.34
6. Patched Medium · 6.5 Smart Slider 3 <= 3.5.1.33 - Authenticated (Subscriber+) Arbitrary File Read via actionExportAll ↗
   2026-03-26 CVE-2026-3098 Missing Authorization Affects <= 3.5.1.33 Patched in 3.5.1.34
7. Patched Medium · 4.9 Smart Slider 3 <= 3.5.1.28 - Authenticated (Administrator+) SQL Injection via `sliderid` Parameter ↗
   2025-07-29 CVE-2025-6348 Improper Neutralization of Special Elements used in an SQL Command Affects <= 3.5.1.28 Patched in 3.5.1.29
8. Patched Medium · 6.4 Smart Slider 3 <= 3.5.1.22 - Missing Authorization to Limited File Upload ↗
   2024-04-12 CVE-2024-3027 Improper Authorization Affects <= 3.5.1.22 Patched in 3.5.1.23
9. Patched Medium · 6.4 Smart Slider 3 <= 3.5.1.13 - Authenticated (Contributor+) Stored Cross-Site Scripting ↗
   2023-02-28 CVE-2023-0660 Improper Neutralization of Input During Web Page Generation Affects <= 3.5.1.13 Patched in 3.5.1.14
10. Patched High · 8.8 Smart Slider 3 <= 3.5.1.9 - Authenticated (Contributor+) PHP Object Injection ↗
    2022-11-23 CVE-2022-45845 Deserialization of Untrusted Data Affects <= 3.5.1.9 Patched in 3.5.1.11
11. Patched Medium · 6.4 Smart Slider 3 <= 3.5.1.9 - Authenticated (Contributor+) Stored Cross-Site Scripting ↗
    2022-11-23 CVE-2022-45843 Improper Neutralization of Input During Web Page Generation Affects <= 3.5.1.9 Patched in 3.5.1.11
12. Patched High · 7.2 Smart Slider 3 <= 3.5.1.9 - PHP Object Injection ↗
    2022-10-10 CVE-2022-3357 Deserialization of Untrusted Data Affects <= 3.5.1.9 Patched in 3.5.1.11
13. Patched Medium · 5.4 Smart Slider 3 <= 3.5.0.8 - Authenticated Stored Cross-Site Scripting ↗
    2021-06-07 CVE-2021-24382 Improper Neutralization of Input During Web Page Generation Affects < 3.5.0.9 Patched in 3.5.0.9

Translated into 37 languages, 36 at 90% or more

Plus 13 more locales with partial translations.

Whether ChatGPT and Claude name this plugin when asked the category question, and whether the readme gives them something to quote.

Growth timeline

Install-tier crossings we have observed, and how long each tier took to outgrow

1. 2026-01-12 900K+ → 800K+ down after 1 days in tier
2. 2026-01-11 800K+ → 900K+ up after 2 days in tier
3. 2026-01-09 900K+ → 800K+ down after 1318 days in tier
4. 2022-06-01 800K+ → 900K+ up after 396 days in tier
5. 2021-05-01 700K+ → 800K+ up after 181 days in tier
6. 2020-11-01 600K+ → 700K+ up after 213 days in tier
7. 2020-04-02 500K+ → 600K+ up after 211 days in tier
8. 2019-09-04 400K+ → 500K+ up after 187 days in tier

Competes with

The plugins that solve the same job, ranked by shared tags then reach, closest match first. The letter on the right is each plugin's health grade (A best, F worst).

Embed this report card

Drop a live Pulse card for Smart Slider 3 into a readme, a review or a deck. It updates itself.

Smart Slider 3: 800K+ active installs, 4.9★ (1,125 reviews). Plugin Pulse (WP Mayor), as of 2026-11-01. https://plugins.wpmayor.com/plugin/smart-slider-3