WordPress plugins are a versatile and helpful tool to help you extend the functionality of your site, and without them WordPress certainly wouldn’t have moved beyond its humble beginnings as a platform for creating your own blog. Today WordPress stands as a robust Content Management System that powers over 35.2% of online websites.
If you’re looking to manage downloads that you have posted for your website visitors, WordPress plugins are the best way to easily add password protections, track downloads, organize files, as well as stop unregistered users from accessing files. Below we’ve listed some of the best download manager plugins.
1. WP Download Manager
First in our list is the WP Download Manager Plugin, which also finishes up top in the customer’s most reliable WordPress download plugins. It just does so much more than just managing downloads. Here are some of its features:
- It helps protect full folders of files
- It organizes each file in the packages by using passwords
This plugin has an average rating of 4.5/5 and is free for its basic version. The premium version costs $45 for users and gives you access control.
2. Download Monitor
A simple yet effective plugin that helps monitor all of your downloadable files. It supports all file formats, and it can be a pro tool for all your download management needs. The basic version is available for free. Here are all of its listed features:
- It allows you to add, edit or remove downloads from the WordPress dashboard
- It allows you to sell your downloads
- It displays the download links, downloads tracking, logs access, and has live file download counts
- For all of your downloads, you can add it on your quick-add panel
- 100% Gutenberg compatible
- As you add a download, you can define alternative links for different versions of the download
- It also has many templates that can change the appearance of your downloadable files
3. WordPress Download Manager
This plugin is one of the most popular WordPress download managers out there that helps in tracking, managing and controlling file downloads on your WordPress websites with more than 100,000+ active users. It has the following features:
- Its personalized post type and taxonomy feature can be a great way to add downloads
- It comes with a ‘drag and drop’ feature
- With the server’s file browser, you can attach any file from your server
- It supports Google, DropBox, OneDrive, etc
- It gives you the leash to control who can access your downloads
- It helps you with Password protection and gives category level access control
- It also has a Video File Download Protection feature which allows visitors to view videos but not download
This plugin in its basic version comes for free, but since it has a lot of add-ons, some of these are premium-only.
4. Easy Digital Downloads
One of the strongest contenders for your next WordPress download manager can help you with sales of digital products like eBooks, WordPress plugins, PDF files, etc. Because of its wide range in functionalities, it is used by more than 60,000 people worldwide. Here are some of its features:
- Software, documents, photos, eBooks, graphics or almost any other media is supported in this plugin
- It comes with its own fully featured download management system
- It can support all sorts of Payment Gateways like PayPal Standard, Amazon Payments, Stripe, Braintree, Authorize.Net, 2Checkout, Sofort Banking, BitPay, Coinbase, and more for paid downloads
- It also has exclusive add-ons library like Software Licensing, Recurring payments, Frontend submissions, etc
- It is an extensible, adaptable, and open source plugin
The free plugin is available in the WordPress Plugin Repository. The Premium version starts at a fee of $99.
5. WordPress Download Manager Pro
If other plugins help you in selling your digital products, this plugin can be like an eCommerce solution for selling all your digital downloads. While the basic version of this plugin is good, the premium version actually takes the download management to another level. Since this plugin comes SEO-friendly, it can take care of a lot of little details. Some of its features are:
- Adding up of multiple files in one, single entry
- This plugin gives you access control that helps you to give/restrict permissions for downloads to certain users
- This plugin can also help you to override the maximum upload limit of the server with the chunk upload option
- This plugin can help you to upload your files via FTP
- It has multi-level categories
- It also comes with a CSV Import facility
- The pro version also comes with download status, personalized URLs, email lock, bulk support, multi-file package, individual file info, multiple passwords enable, etc
The plans start at $99 and go all up to $299.
6. File Manager Plugin for WordPress
It is a powerful plugin for WordPress that has a great User Interface and can do a lot of work in one place. Its features include:
- It gives you front-end access
- It can generate shortcodes
- It comes with an Image editor, Document viewer
- It can ban access to certain users
- It can also help in enabling/disabling file managers
- It can help in creating archives
- It helps in giving users access control
Its premium plans start from $15 and cost up to $75 for a full extended license.
7. Groups File Access WordPress Plugin
Handy in nature, this plugin helps by allowing access to downloads based on group membership. All other access to files is restricted, based on the user’s group membership. Therefore, if you’re able to download a file without any obstructions, it is because you must be a member of the group that is assigned to the file. Here are some of its other features:
- This restricted and exclusive access can help ingroup authorization
- It helps in embedding protected streaming media
- It can help in a limited or unlimited number of downloads
- It can also provide full multisite support
- You can upload multiple files via FTP
- It can give customizable file access notification
- It also comes with flexible shortcodes
The premium version starts at $29 for the extended license.
8. WordPress File Download Manager
If you’re familiar with the Envato Market (a collection of handpicked themed marketplaces that is built exclusively for innovative digital products), then you’d find this plugin there. It is a great file manager that is helpful for clients to access confidential files easily. Here are its features:
- Uploading a file in the admin panel to assign it to a user
- Users can log in to download accessible files
- Automatic creation of login and download pages
- Completely secure.
- Integrates easily with WordPress’ file and users system
It comes at a regular license fee of $17.
9. CM Download Manager
This plugin packs in a lot of features, and comes in a limited free version. It can help you to upload, download, share and track all the files in a directory for everyone to access accordingly. It also helps in building an online course, or an HR dashboard with its unique functionalities. Some of them are:
- It manages all your ZIP files
- It also comes with audio player, video player, and image slideshow functionalities
- It can seamlessly integrate with Google Docs and provide instant file preview
- It helps you restrict file access
- It sends you email notifications
- It can also customize the look and feel of the download page with templates
- It has Download Manager Shortcodes
- It comes with Password Protection for files
The premium version can cost up to $39 for one website and $69 for five websites.
This was our take on the top 10 most-handy WordPress download manager plugins. With all the fast-paced development of better and compelling plugins every day I’m sure that these functionalities can easily be replaced the next time you’re on the hunt. Till then, we hope this list helped you save a lot of time and resources. If you’re looking for a company to handle the development and configuration of your WordPress site for you, hire the best wordpress experts from CodeClouds. They’re the company that developed a popular sticky.io WordPress plugin and a Konnektive CRM WordPress plugin.
