User Role Editor

87 Quality Score

Active Installs

26/30

With 700,000 active installs, User Role Editor has a substantial user base that reflects long-standing trust in the role-management category.

Update Freshness

25/25

A perfect maintenance score is supported by a last update dated May 2026 and clearly stated minimum requirements for WordPress 4.4 and PHP 7.3.

User Rating

14/15

A 90 out of 100 rating across 287 reviews indicates strong, consistent user satisfaction.

Support Health

8/15

Support health is weak, with 4 threads on record and 0 percent resolved, which suggests limited or slow public assistance despite the plugin's maintenance activity.

WP Compatibility

15/15

Full marks here are justified by an explicit compatibility range down to WordPress 4.4, which gives administrators plenty of room on older installs.

Scores higher than 97% of indexed plugins

About

User Role Editor WordPress plugin makes user roles and capabilities changing easy. Edit/add/delete WordPress user roles and capabilities.

Active Installs 700k+

Rating ★★★★½ 4.5/5

Last Updated 2026-09-25 8:24am GMT

Requires WordPress 4.7+

Tested Up To 7.1.2

Requires PHP 7.4+

Security History

2 known vulnerabilities, all patched

2 High

Most recent: December 16, 2024

View details ▸

What It Does

User Role Editor lets you change, create, or delete WordPress user roles and the individual capabilities assigned to them from a single admin interface. It works on top of the existing roles that ship with WordPress, so you can grant custom permissions (for example, letting editors manage widgets or restricting authors from publishing) without writing code. The plugin also supports multisite and can synchronize role definitions across an entire network.

Who It's For

This plugin is best for site administrators who need fine-grained control over what each user type can and cannot do, especially on multi-author blogs, membership sites, agency-managed client installs, or any site with distinct staff, moderator, instructor, or member roles. It is particularly useful for non-developers who want to customize permissions without touching functions.php or writing custom plugins.

Who Should Skip It

If your site only has a couple of administrators and default author and subscriber roles are already enough, this plugin is overkill and adds unnecessary surface area. Solo bloggers running a simple personal site should stick with WordPress core capabilities instead.

The Bottom Line

User Role Editor delivers exactly what its name promises: a reliable interface for tweaking roles and capabilities, backed by strong maintenance and a large install base. The unresolved support threads are a real concern if you ever get stuck, but the plugin's track record and compatibility range still make it a safe pick for administrators who need precise permission control. Skip it only if your permission needs are already met by WordPress core.

Pick Really Simple Security when your main concern is SSL and HTTPS enforcement, not user capabilities.

Wordfence Security – Firewall, Malware Scan, and Login Security 97/100

Choose Wordfence if you need a full security stack including firewall and malware scanning rather than role customization.

Elementor Website Builder – more than just a page builder 95/100

Elementor is only relevant here if you also need a drag-and-drop page builder, as it does not address user roles.

Spectra Legacy – Gutenberg Blocks 95/100

Spectra is a Gutenberg block library and is not a substitute for role management.

Members – Membership & User Role Editor Plugin 94/100

Pick Members if you want role editing bundled with content restriction, shortcodes, and a more membership-focused feature set.