Alexis Kestler
The WordPress block editor (Gutenberg) has revolutionized how we build pages. With its modular approach, you can easily add different types of content blocks and customize them to create beautiful, engaging web pages.
While Gutenberg already comes with a decent set of blocks, there are some gaps that plugins can fill. Block editor plugins add new blocks and features to help you extend Gutenberg‘s capabilities.
In this post, I‘ll share my top picks for the best WordPress block editor plugins that can level up your page building workflow. Whether you want additional blocks, customization options, page layout features or importable templates – this list has something for everyone.
Why Use Block Editor Plugins?
Here are some of the key reasons to use block editor plugins:
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Get More Blocks: Add specialized blocks like pricing tables, counters, testimonials etc. that are not in core Gutenberg. This expands your design capabilities.
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More Customization: Get advanced controls over spacing, typography, colors etc. Tweak blocks exactly how you want.
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Save Time: Import pre-made block templates for different sites and pages instead of building from scratch.
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Better Performance: Some plugins optimize blocks for speed and disable unused blocks.
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Better Collaboration: Options to disable access to certain blocks and create user profiles.
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Expanding Possibilities: Unlock more features like animations, gradients, background images as you build your pages.
Now that you know why you need these plugins, let‘s look at some of the best options available.
1. Atomic Blocks
Atomic Blocks is a free WordPress plugin that adds custom Gutenberg blocks through a library interface. Instead of single blocks, it gives you whole block collections to build all kinds of websites.
The custom blocks are versatile and include options like buttons, galleries, posts grids, testimonials etc. You can customize each block with available settings for colors, fonts, sizes and more.
Atomic Blocks contains blocks for layouts, content, and parts like headers, footers etc. Some interesting blocks include the sharing icons block that lets visitors share your pages on social media.
For someone looking for an all-round block solution, Atomic Blocks is a great choice. With regular updates and new blocks being added, it continues to evolve.
Key Features
- 15+ Gutenberg blocks for content, layouts etc.
- Customize colors, fonts, sizes etc.
- Free and open source
- Regular updates
2. Ultimate Addons for Gutenberg
As the name suggests, Ultimate Addons significantly improves Gutenberg by adding tons of new blocks. With over 22 custom blocks, it expands the possibilities of what you can build.
The Ultimate Addons blocks include layout blocks, content blocks, dynamic blocks and advanced blocks. Some interesting ones are the multi buttons block, expanding table of contents block and multiple social sharing options.
A handy feature is the option to enable/disable certain blocks. You can remove unused blocks easily this way. For those using the Astra theme, Ultimate Addons integrates perfectly with existing Astra starter sites.
Key Features:
- 22+ Gutenberg blocks
- Enable/Disable blocks
- Integrates well with Astra theme
- Free and open source
3. Stackable Ultimate Blocks
Stackable takes the concept of building with blocks more visually. Stackable allows you to stack blocks in any order to create custom layouts.
It contains blocks like icon list, notices, separators and even saved block templates. By mixing and matching over 20 available blocks, you can create interesting page designs.
A useful feature in Stackable is the ability to save your reusable blocks or sections. This means you can use it like building blocks and pull them into other pages. There is also a premium version for $19 per year with extra features.
Key Features:
- 20+ blocks for sections, content etc.
- Reuse blocks through saved templates
- Free and paid premium version available
- Over 20,000 active installs
4. Kadence Blocks
Kadence Blocks brings the concept of rows and columns to the block editor. You can easily create advanced multi-column layouts with complete control.
It contains purpose-built blocks for common needs like icons, info boxes, buttons etc. The handy row layout block lets you add background colors/images to create attractive split block designs.
For someone looking for advanced page layout capabilities, Kadence Blocks is a great choice. You can design high converting landing pages and sales websites without limitations. It‘s available as a free plugin and in a paid version for additional features.
Key Features:
- Row/column focused multi-column layouts
- 12 Purpose built blocks
- Free plugin with premium version available
- Background images/overlays
5. Qubely Blocks
Qubely is a grid-based Gutenberg page builder plugin with 25+ content blocks. It contains all the common blocks you need – articles, media, buttons, tabs, accordions etc.
The interesting row and column layout features let you build modern multi-column designs easily. Simply add a row block, customize columns and stack your content blocks.
Qubely‘s section library is another great feature. It contains ready sections tailored for different industries like restaurants, events, services etc. There is a drag and drop section builder to adjust these templates.
It‘s also available as a paid premium plugin with a starting price of $47 per year. This unlocks more blocks, templates and features for power users.
Key Features:
- 25+ Gutenberg blocks
- Custom row/columns layout
- Sections library of 150+ premade block designs
- Free and paid premium version
6. CoBlocks Page Builder
CoBlocks is an open-source WordPress page builder plugin. With over 30 content blocks, you get everything from buttons to maps to showcase your content beautifully.
An interesting feature in CoBlocks is the typography control panel. This lets you manage the fonts being using seamlessly across all blocks from one place.
Other handy controls include padding, margins and width – which adjust automatically per block. This gives you flexibility when building pages with uneven grid ratios.
Created by GoDaddy, CoBlocks perfectly compliments the new Go theme for Gutenberg sites. But as it‘s open source, it works with any WordPress theme and is totally free.
Key features:
- 30+ blocks covering content, media, layouts etc.
- Global typography controls
- Automatic responsive padding/margins
- Free & open source
7. Getwid Blocks & Templates
Getwid allows you to build custom pages with over 40 specialized blocks. It contains blocks for showcasing features, sharing posts, opening popups and more that help capture attention.
An amazing addition is the library of 35+ section templates for different industries. You can simply import and install these pre-made template packs as needed – saving tons of time.
Getwid has blocks with cool animations and custom styling options like displaying border on hover. This adds interactivity that increases engagement as visitors scroll through your pages.
Both free and premium version available, it works well with all themes and plugins. For the features it provides, Getwid is easily among the best free block editor plugins available.
Key Features:
- 40+ Purpose-built blocks
- 35+ premade section templates
- Animation effects and styling options
- Free & premium versions available
8. Ultimate Blocks
Ultimate Blocks enables you to quickly build beautiful pages with 18 custom Gutenberg blocks. It meets a wide variety of needs from testimonials to content filtering to calls-to-action.
An interesting addition Ultimate Blocks brings is content filtering. This lets visitors filter through page content easily based on categories or tags.
The plugin has blocks to showcase content beautifully like the post grid block. Features like custom fonts and hover effects make blocks stand out. A lightweight plugin that stays simple but effective for everyday needs.
Key Features:
- 18 Gutenberg content blocks
- Content filtering
- Custom font and styling options
- Free & open source
9. Premium Blocks for Gutenberg
Premium Blocks is an open source Gutenberg plugin that is both lightweight and powerful. You can add up to 12 blocks covering banners, buttons, videos etc.
It has some niche blocks not found in other plugins like the review block. This shows ratings in different formats. Another useful one is the Google Translate block to make pages multilingual-ready.
While limited to 12 blocks only, they cover most common needs for bloggers, marketers, etc. Useful blocks like counters, testimonials, pricing tables are available to design high converting pages.
Key Features:
- 12 free blocks
- Niche blocks like reviews, translation block etc.
- Lightweight open source plugin
10. Ultimate Addons for Beaver Builder
Ultimate Addons is a collection of over 20 blocks purpose-built for the Beaver Builder plugin. It brings popular modules like Info Circle, Interactive Banner, Flip Box and more.
These blocks and modules work seamlessly to extend Beaver Builder‘s page builder functionality. The cool Interactive Banner lets you display messages when users hover or click.
While made as an add-on for Beaver Builder, it does function with the WordPress block editor too. So you can leverage these unique blocks even without the parent plugin.
Key Features:
- 20+ Beaver Builder blocks
- Unique modules like Flip Box
- Works without Beaver Builder too
11. Qubely – Gutenberg Blocks and Page Builder
Qubely is a flexible WordPress block editor plugin for building pages. It contains over 25 blocks covering all common page building needs from tabs to buttons to videos.
It‘s section library of over 150 block template packs is useful for quickly inserting parts like headers, footers etc. Drag these sections into your pages and easily customize.
Qubely also has advanced row and column layouts using a grid system. This helps you build pixel perfect multi-column designs with ease. Equally suited for blogs, business sites etc.
There is a premium version that starts at $47 per year and contains more features. But the free plugin itself packs a punch.
Key Features:
- 25+ Blocks for content, navigation, media etc.
- 150+ section templates
- Drag and drop section builder
- Free & premium plugin available
12. Gutenberg Blocks and Page Builder by Otter
Otter Blocks allows you to add useful Gutenberg blocks as well as pre-built page layouts. It has over a dozen content blocks like buttons, posts grids, sharing icons that come handy.
It also has a templates section that is constantly updated. Here you can import and install optimized templates for blogs, small business, restaurants, events etc sites. Tweak these templates easily to create pages faster.
Otter Blocks contains options to add effects like hover color. And it‘s lightweight so it doesn‘t slow down your WordPress site. Altogether an excellent free plugin for blogs and business sites looking for blocks with templates.
Key Features:
- 12+ Purpose blocks for content
- Page and Section templates
- Hover effects and styling options
- Free & open source
13. Block Gallery Block
As the name suggests, Block Gallery plugin is targeted specially for showcasing visual content. You can create filterable, sortable galleries optimized for engagement.
It has 3 styles of gallery blocks – thumbnail grid, slideshow view, and metro view. Each style displays images/videos in an attractive layout that visitors can shuffle through.
Other than images you can add videos, captions, tags and links to individual items in the grid view. This creates interactive galleries perfect for art, products, travel sites etc.
A simple but powerful gallery plugin for Gutenberg users with over 9,000 site using it.
Key Features
- Grid, Slideshow and Metro Gallery blocks
- Show images, videos, captions etc
- Filter/ Sort gallery content
- Free and open source
14. Easy Blocks for Gutenberg
Easy Blocks is a new Gutenberg plugin that is gaining popularity quickly. It allows you to build custom pages flexibly with over 20 blocks.
From testimonials to counters to Instagram grids, it contains everything to design high-converting pages. You also get fine-grained controls over content design from colors to borders to spacing.
Some nifty options include the multi-column layouts block where columns can be edited inline. There is also parallax effect, SVG icons and box-shadow settings to make visually appealing pages.
If you‘re looking for a free, modern block editor plugin with advanced customizations, this is worth checking out.
Key Features:
- 20+ Gutenberg blocks
- Multi-column layouts
- Box shadows, SVG icons
- Customizations for layout and styles
15. Addons for Elementor
While not made exclusively for Gutenberg, this free plugin by Elementor Page Builder adds useful widgets. You can utilize these widgets as custom blocks to extend default Gutenberg.
It has a device preview mode that‘s useful when designing responsive pages for mobile devices. Another handy widget is the floating effects widget that lets you fix elements on the page viewport.
There are 20+ such widgets for animation, themes and dynamic content. With regular updates this open source plugin delivers value even for non-Elementor users.
Key Features:
- 20+ Widgets for Gutenberg blocks
- Device preview mode
- Floating effects fixer widget
- Free and open source
Conclusion
The WordPress block editor keeps getting better and better. And these plugins help you unlock more value regardless of whether you‘re a beginner or advanced user.
I‘ve compiled this list to feature some of the best Gutenberg plugins worth using. With hundreds of options, it‘s easy to get overwhelmed or make the wrong choice. Hopefully this post has given you a good overview of popular plugins.
The block plugins and addons highlighted here were chosen based on:
- Useful blocks: Packs blocks not found in default Gutenberg
- Features: Advanced controls, customizations, templates etc
- Ease of use: Flexible with good documentation
- Ratings & downloads: Good reviews and active user base
- Pricing: Mostly free or freemium options
While Atomic Blocks, Ultimate Addons, Stackable and Kadence Blocks are editor favorites, I‘d suggest you try out lesser known ones too. Plugins like Getwid might perfectly meet your requirements.
So go ahead and experiment to find out what works! Using these plugins can make page building enjoyable while taking your designs up a notch.
Let me know in comments if you have any recommendations for other cool block editor plugins.
