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Debug This

By Razvan Aldea

Developer Tools & Customization / Code Snippets & Custom Code

Reviewed by Omar Dabbas

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

Debug This Review - In-Depth Analysis

Debug This provides detailed debugging reports for WordPress installations, accessible from the admin bar.

Performance Overview

WPS Score

6.73/10

User Rating

4.8/5 (based on 17+ reviews)

Active Installations

2,000+

Update Frequency

Below 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

Debug This is a powerful tool for admins, developers, and support staff. It offers a wealth of information about your WordPress installation right from the front-end admin bar.

This plugin allows you to view the current WP_Query object, blog info and options, embed providers, files in rendered HTML, filters and actions, image sizes, globals and constants, menus, object cache stats, plugins, rewrite rules, PHP and server information, and much more.

Debug This helps you save time and effort when troubleshooting issues. Instead of hardcoding debug snippets or writing complex unit tests, you can quickly access the information you need directly from the admin bar.

Comparing to Alternatives

Debug This is a specialized debugging plugin with several alternatives available that offer similar developer-focused features.

Top alternatives

Strengths

Highly effective for debugging rewrite rules and PHP info display.
Simple and straightforward interface for developers.
No known security vulnerabilities, ensuring safe use.
Strong positive user feedback with a high rating of 4.8 out of 5.

Weaknesses

Requires the WordPress Admin Bar to be enabled on the front end, which can be a limitation for some sites.
Lacks a pro version with extended features.
May not be suitable for sites that cannot expose the Admin Bar even briefly.
Limited user base compared to some alternatives, with fewer total ratings.

User Sentiment Analysis

With a 94.1% five-star rating and only one low-rated review, users generally praise Debug This for its effectiveness and ease of use.

Positive highlights

"It took me 1 min to work it out with this plugin. Thanks a lot." – lottasund
"Great plugin to truly get under the WordPress hood. Thanks." – Dash
"Very useful, thank you for your great work!" – milenfrom
"Very nice, even the phpinfo() colors are displayed correctly." – huntermaster
"Great work!" – xmarijam

Common complaints

Requires the Admin Bar to be visible on the front end, which is not feasible for some community sites.
Incompatibility with plugins that hide the Admin Bar, forcing workaround solutions.

Weaknesses

Dependency on the Admin Bar visibility limits use cases.
No advanced features beyond the free version.
Limited customization options for debugging output.

Who Should Use This?

Best for

Developers and site administrators who need a straightforward debugging tool and can enable the Admin Bar on the front end for administrator users.

Not ideal for

Sites that must keep the Admin Bar hidden at all times on the front end, such as active community websites with strict front-end access controls.

Pricing & Value

Free version includes

The free version offers comprehensive debugging tools including PHP info display and rewrite rule troubleshooting without any cost.

Final Verdict

Debug This is a highly rated and secure debugging plugin that excels in providing essential developer tools with simplicity and effectiveness. Its main limitation is the requirement to have the Admin Bar visible on the front end, which restricts its use in certain environments.

For developers who can accommodate this requirement, Debug This offers excellent value as a free tool. However, those needing more flexibility or who cannot expose the Admin Bar should consider alternative plugins.

Other Notable Features

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

Debug

Debugger

Developer

Hooks

Query

Screenshots

FAQ

Make sure the admin bar is enabled in your user profile.
Visit any page/post/archive on your website and you will see a Debug This menu item on the admin bar.