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MetaSlider Lightbox – Modals & Lightboxes – Image, Gallery, Video, Slideshow Lightbox

By MetaSlider

Design & Themes /

Reviewed by Omar Dabbas

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

MetaSlider Lightbox – Modals & Lightboxes – Image, Gallery, Video, Slideshow Lightbox Review - In-Depth Analysis

MetaSlider Lightbox is a versatile lightbox and modal plugin for WordPress. It allows you to create lightboxes for images, galleries, videos, and slideshows.

Performance Overview

WPS Score

7.23/10

User Rating

4.4/5 (based on 9+ reviews)

Active Installations

10,000+

Update Frequency

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

Security Score

1 / 10 (Very Low Risk) It is calculated using the weighted average of all versions.

What It Does

MetaSlider Lightbox is the lightbox and modal plugin for WordPress. You can use MetaSlider Lightbox to add modal windows for images, galleries, videos, slideshows and more. You can use MetaSlider Lightbox to enhance your MetaSlider slideshows, plus also the media files inside your WordPress posts.

The MetaSlider Lightbox plugin allows you to show a wide variety of media inside a lightbox modal window, including images, image galleries, videos hosted on WordPress sites, Vimeo videos, YouTube Videos, and featured images.

You can really enhance your WordPress media with a lightbox. Visitors can view your images or videos and then open them inside a modal. This can make the image or video larger and also darken the background so it’s easier to focus on the media.

MetaSlider Lightbox allows you to add lightboxes to images in your WordPress post content. You can choose to automatically add the lightbox to all images, or you can do it manually via the 'Enlarge on click' setting. This works with both the block editor and the Classic Editor. You can also use this lightbox with page-builders such as Elementor, Divi, and Beaver Builder.

MetaSlider Lightbox allows you to add lightboxes to image galleries in your WordPress post content. You can choose to automatically add the lightbox to all images, or you can do it manually via the 'Enlarge on click' setting. Each image in your gallery can get its own lightbox setting.

You can use the MetaSlider Lightbox plugin to show videos inside a lightbox modal window. The MetaSlider Lightbox plugin supports videos hosted inside your WordPress media library. You can use MetaSlider Lightbox to showcase your .MP4, .WebM, and .MOV videos.

MetaSlider Lightbox allows you to add lightboxes to YouTube videos in your WordPress post content. You can choose to automatically add the lightbox to all YouTube images.

MetaSlider Lightbox allows you to add lightboxes to Vimeo videos in your WordPress post content. You can choose to automatically add the lightbox to all Vimeo videos.

The MetaSlider lightbox plugin connects deeply with the MetaSlider slideshow plugin. A slideshow allows you to create a beautiful showcase of images or videos for your visitors. You can enhance your slideshow with a lightbox.

The MetaSlider Lightbox plugin has a wide range of design options to allow you to customize the lightbox effect. You can customize the lightbox background and overlay appearance.

Comparing to Alternatives

MetaSlider Lightbox offers a solid lightbox solution with several comparable plugins available that provide similar functionalities for image and video display.

Top alternatives

Strengths

Supports image, gallery, video, and slideshow lightboxes.
Intuitive and increasingly customizable interface.
Responsive design compatible with various devices.
Good integration with popular lightbox plugins.
No known security vulnerabilities.

Weaknesses

Lacks a pro version with advanced features.
Some users find cropping options unintuitive.
Separated from MetaSlider core plugin, which may confuse users.
Limited user base compared to more established alternatives.

User Sentiment Analysis

With a strong majority of 5-star and 4-star ratings, users generally appreciate the plugin's functionality and support, though a small minority express dissatisfaction.

Positive highlights

"Great!" - lsrlhuge appreciates the plugin's intuitive and powerful customization.
"Works well!" - bimofix finds it effective with minor issues.
"Really great work!" - richardsan praises the plugin's quality.
"A really useful plugin" - vitralsolutions values its compatibility with popular lightbox plugins.
"Works as Described" - arceoh confirms it meets expectations.

Common complaints

The plugin should be integrated into MetaSlider rather than a separate add-on.
Cropping options are poorly designed and difficult to adjust.
Basic features are insufficient without upgrading, which is not clearly promoted.

Weaknesses

Limited cropping customization frustrates some users.
Separation from MetaSlider core causes confusion.
No clear premium upgrade path despite references to pro features.
Minor compatibility issues with some responsive lightbox plugins.

Who Should Use This?

Best for

Users seeking a straightforward, free lightbox plugin that integrates well with MetaSlider and supports multiple media types without security concerns.

Not ideal for

Those who want advanced cropping controls, prefer an all-in-one MetaSlider solution, or require a premium version with extended features.

Pricing & Value

Free version includes

The free version offers essential lightbox functionality for images, galleries, videos, and slideshows with responsive design and compatibility with popular lightbox plugins.

Final Verdict

MetaSlider Lightbox is a reliable and secure plugin that delivers core lightbox features effectively, supported by positive user feedback and responsive support. Its free offering is sufficient for many users needing basic image and video lightbox capabilities.

However, its separation from the main MetaSlider plugin and limited customization options, especially in cropping, may deter some users. Those seeking advanced features or integrated solutions might consider alternative plugins with pro versions.

Other Notable Features

Here are a few other notable features of this free MetaSlider Lightbox – Modals & Lightboxes – Image, Gallery, Video, Slideshow Lightbox plugin.

Gallery Lightbox

Image Lightbox

Video Lightbox

Screenshots

FAQ

We rely on lightGallery which is a lightweight, modular, JavaScript image and video lightbox gallery. Find out more at their website. lightGallery is built with most modern technologies available to achieve the best performance and quality. It supports all modern browsers including IE 10 and above. lightGallery is highly optimized for mobile and tablets so you get a native look-and-feel, plus best performance.

Yes, a legacy feature in this plugin allows you to connect other Lightbox plugins to MetaSlider slideshows. We no longer support this feature, but it may still work. Here are the connected slideshows:

If you would like to use a lightbox plugin, you can filter the supported plugin list with the necessary attributes. For example, using the Responsive Lightbox Lite plugin, try this code:

 add_filter('metaslider_lightbox_supported_plugins', 'supported_plugins_list'); function supported_plugins_list($supported_plugins_list) {     return array(         'Responsive Lightbox' => array(             'location' => 'responsive-lightbox-lite/responsive-lightbox-lite.php',             'settings_url' => 'options-general.php?page=responsive-lightbox-lite',             'rel' => 'lightbox',             'attributes' => array(                 'data-lightbox-type' => 'iframe'             )         )     ); }

Contributors and developers

“MetaSlider Lightbox – Modals & Lightboxes – Image, Gallery, Video, Slideshow Lightbox” is open source software. The following people have contributed to this plugin.