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Videopack

By Kyle Gilman

Content Management / Video & Podcast Management

Reviewed by Abdul Hameid

Trusted WordPress expert with 20+ years of experience evaluating plugins for the WP ecosystem.

Videopack Review - In-Depth Analysis

Videopack generates video thumbnails and allows resolution switching for responsive self-hosted videos and galleries.

Performance Overview

WPS Score

6.96/10

User Rating

4.8/5 (based on 63+ reviews)

Active Installations

10,000+

Update Frequency

Outstanding It is calculated using the weighted average of same category plugins.

Security Score

5 / 10 (Medium Risk) It is calculated using the weighted average of all versions.

What It Does

Videopack is a powerful plugin that enhances your video capabilities in WordPress. It allows you to create video players, generate thumbnails, and offer multiple resolutions for your videos.

With Videopack, you can easily generate thumbnails from your uploaded videos in the WordPress Media Library. If your server has FFMPEG installed, you can automate video encoding as well.

The plugin also supports creating a video gallery using a simple shortcode, making it easy to showcase all videos attached to a post. Additionally, you can add advertisements to your videos through the Videopack Ads premium add-on.

Comparing to Alternatives

Videopack is a robust video embedding and thumbnail generation plugin with several direct alternatives available in the WordPress ecosystem.

Top alternatives

Strengths

Generates video thumbnails automatically, including for iOS Safari where thumbnails are not rendered by default
Supports video compression and resizing, saving storage space
Easy to use with one-click thumbnail generation
Handles vertical video dimension corrections
Highly rated by users for reliability and features

Weaknesses

Recent updates have caused compatibility issues with block editor visibility
Has had multiple medium severity security vulnerabilities in the past, though fixed in recent versions
Some users report the plugin not appearing in certain editors after updates
Security risk score is moderate, indicating a history of vulnerabilities

User Sentiment Analysis

With a high overall rating of 4.8 out of 5 from 63 reviews, most users praise Videopack for its functionality and ease of use. The few negative reviews are minimal and do not reflect widespread issues.

Positive highlights

'Works brilliantly!' - carl4141
'Pretty much the best wordpress plugin to encode files.' - Jack
'Saves me a lot of time by simply generating an aleatory thumbnail in one click.' - carlosvai
'Very happy with this plugin to display videos on my site for mobile and desktop.' - digihulpdienst
'Compresses video, creates and adds thumbnails automatically, fixes vertical video dimensions.' - oshurkov

Common complaints

Weaknesses

Recent update caused plugin to not appear in block editor or media options for some users
Moderate security risk due to past vulnerabilities requiring updates

Who Should Use This?

Best for

Users who need an efficient and reliable plugin to embed videos with automatic thumbnail generation and video compression, especially those targeting mobile and desktop users who require consistent video display.

Not ideal for

Users who prioritize maximum security and want to avoid plugins with a history of vulnerabilities, or those who rely heavily on the block editor and cannot tolerate recent compatibility issues without fixes.

Pricing & Value

Free version includes

The free version offers essential features like video embedding, automatic thumbnail generation, and video compression, providing substantial value for most users.

Pro version

The pro version typically includes advanced features such as enhanced video encoding options, priority support, additional customization settings, and possibly integration with premium video hosting services.

Final Verdict

Videopack stands out as a powerful and user-friendly video embedding plugin with automatic thumbnail generation and video compression capabilities. Its high user ratings reflect satisfaction with its core features and ease of use. The availability of many alternatives offers options for users with different needs.

However, the plugin's history of medium-severity security vulnerabilities and recent compatibility issues with the block editor should be considered. Users who require robust security or rely heavily on the block editor may want to monitor updates closely or consider alternatives. Overall, Videopack offers strong value, especially for those prioritizing video thumbnail generation and compression.

Other Notable Features

Here are a few other notable features of this free Videopack plugin.

Video thumbnails

Video gallery

Video player

Screenshots

FAQ

Most of the time your video doesn’t play because it’s not encoded in the right format. Videos have containers like mp4, mov, ogv, mkv, etc and within those containers there are video and audio codecs like H.264, MPEG-4, VP8, etc. The best option for this plugin is an mp4 container with H.264 video and AAC audio. It’s confusing, but there is a codec usually identified simply as “MPEG-4” of “MPEG-4 Visual” which is not the same thing as H.264 even if it’s in an mp4 container. mp4s with MPEG-4 video will not play in most browsers, and if you don’t use AAC audio you won’t get any audio. I highly recommend using Handbrake to make a file with H.264 video and AAC audio in an MP4 container.

Use MediaInfo to get really detailed information about your media files.

The watermark option is a simple image overlay and is styled using CSS. The default styling is

.kgvid_watermark img {   display: block;   position: absolute;   bottom: 7%;   right: 5%;   z-index: 1;   margin: 0px;   max-width: 10%;   box-shadow: none; }

You can override any of those settings in either your theme’s custom CSS area or using the Jetpack “Custom CSS” module. If you want to make the watermark bigger, try something like

.kgvid_watermark img {   max-width: 20%; }

If you want to put it in the upper left instead of the lower right, try something like this:

.kgvid_watermark img {   top: 7%;   left: 5%; }

The watermark option is a simple image overlay and is styled using CSS. The default styling is

.kgvid_watermark img {   display: block;   position: absolute;   bottom: 7%;   right: 5%;   z-index: 1;   margin: 0px;   max-width: 10%;   box-shadow: none; }

You can override any of those settings in either your theme’s custom CSS area or using the Jetpack “Custom CSS” module. If you want to make the watermark bigger, try something like

.kgvid_watermark img {   max-width: 20%; }

If you want to put it in the upper left instead of the lower right, try something like this:

.kgvid_watermark img {   top: 7%;   left: 5%; }

Contributors and developers

“Videopack” is open source software. The following people have contributed to this plugin.

Kyle Gilman

Pro version Free Version Docs

WPS

6.96

Average

Pro version

Ratings

4.8 out of 5 | 63

Version

4.10.6

Last updated

1 month ago

Active installations

10,000+

WordPress version

7.1.3 or higher

PHP version

7.2 or higher

Languages

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Videopack Review - In-Depth Analysis

Performance Overview

What It Does

Comparing to Alternatives

User Sentiment Analysis

Who Should Use This?

Pricing & Value

Final Verdict

Other Notable Features

Screenshots

FAQ

Contributors and developers

Ratings

Reviews (63)

Sort by:

Contributors & Developers

Interested in development?

Changelog

Security Status

Secure

No Unpatched Vulnerabilities

Known Vulnerabilities (5)

Previous Versions

WPS

6.96

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