Advanced Custom Fields vs Custom Field Variables
Two WordPress plugins head to head: ranking, active installs, downloads and ratings, from our daily tracking of the WordPress.org directory.
These aren’t all alternatives to each other — they do different jobs — so this page compares popularity only, not features.
At a glance
Advanced Custom Fields leads the WordPress.org popular list today at #28, ahead of Custom Field Variables at #65,229. Over the last 7 days Advanced Custom Fields held its place and Custom Field Variables slipped 5,901 places. Downloads this week: Advanced Custom Fields 92,445 and Custom Field Variables 17.
| Metric | Advanced Custom Fields | Custom Field Variables |
|---|---|---|
| Popular rank today | #28 ▬ | #65,229 ▼ 5901 |
| Active installs | 2M+ | — |
| Downloads, last 7 days | 92,445 | 17 |
| Rating | 4.5★ (1,440) | no ratings |
| Last updated | Sep 10, 2026 | Jul 30, 2017 |
| Current version | 6.8.10 | 1.0.1 |
| Best rank on record | #28 | #47,537 |
| Days in the top 50 | 89 | 0 |
| On WordPress.org since | Mar 2011 | Jul 2017 |
| Sites detected by our detector | 4 | 0 |
Highlighted cells mark the strongest figure in each row. Rank and installs are from the latest WordPress.org capture; downloads are the last seven captured days.
Ranking history Lower is better
Active installs
Downloads per day
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Frequently asked questions
Which ranks higher on WordPress.org, Advanced Custom Fields or Custom Field Variables?
Advanced Custom Fields, at #28 on the WordPress.org popular plugins list today, with Custom Field Variables at #65,229. The ranking reflects recent installs and moves daily, which is why this page shows the history rather than one snapshot.
Are Advanced Custom Fields or Custom Field Variables alternatives to each other?
Not all of them. Some of these plugins do different jobs and many sites run more than one. This page compares their popularity, not their features.
Where do these numbers come from?
WordPress.org publishes each plugin’s active install count and its position on the popular list. This site records both every day, along with per-day downloads and ratings, so the charts above show how the plugins have moved over time rather than a single day.