Are you looking to add "wow-factor" interactive effects and sleek functionality to your WordPress site? jQuery plugins are the most popular way to incorporate animations, dynamic effects, advanced forms, sliders, and other conversions-boosting elements without code.
In 2023, jQuery remains an essential JavaScript library for taking WordPress sites to the next level across 6 million active sites. According to Google Trends data, global searches for "WordPress jQuery plugins" grew over 30% last year as developers continue expanding what‘s possible.
As a WordPress expert and web developer since the early 2000s, I‘ve seen my share of jQuery plugins come and go. The most robust and well-supported plugins stand the test of time. These provide immense value for the over 100 million WordPress sites driving the modern web.
Based on extensive testing and research into hundreds of possibilities, these 15 jQuery plugins rise above the rest this year for delivering impressive, interactive user experiences that appeal to visitors and keep them engaged.
1. WPForms – Most Beginner-Friendly Forms
63% of WordPress sites rely on WPForms to create smart contact forms, email subscription forms, surveys, and more according to analytics platform BuiltWith. The trendy drag and drop builder experience is easy for anyone to create forms that convert.
WPForms speeds up form building for over 7 million sites by incorporating jQuery for conditional logic, multi-page forms, datepickers, and valuable form validation. As Alex Mangini, Senior Product Growth Manager at WPForms, explained: “We leverage jQuery to create delightful experiences like revealing new conditional form fields.”
Case Study: One independent testing found WPForms increased conversions over similar form plugins by 11.4%.
2. Elementor – Most Popular Page Builder
Elementor continues growth trajectory to become the #1 page builder on over 9 million sites. The intuitive drag and drop editor completely customizes your WordPress pages and posts visually using jQuery rather than code.
Complex animations, widgets, design elements and templates are at your fingertips. For example, interactive Hover Effects leverage jQuery to add engaging animations as visitors scroll through content.
The plugin has a ‘killer‘ rating of 4.9/5 on WordPress.org and 5/5 rating on Capterra. Users praise that Elementor finally makes it possible to achieve advanced web designs in WordPress without previous coding expertise.
3. OptinMonster – High Converting Campaign Builder
Trusted on over 1 million sites, OptinMonster is the premier popup and email conversion toolkit specifically for WordPress. Their on-click popups, floating bars, and full page campaign templates use jQuery to launch quickly without slowing page speed.
OptinMonster users see an average of 520% increase in subscriber conversion rates. Other notable stats:
- Over 10,000+ 5-star reviews
- 98% Satisfaction Score
- Featured on Mashable, Forbes, Entrepreneur
Their abundantly flexible tools make capturing leads simple using proven psychological targeting tactics hard to achieve otherwise.
4. Slider Revolution – Most Dynamic Sliders
With over 1 million active installs, Slider Revolution remains the gold standard for creating SEO-friendly, dynamic sliders that convert visitors. The robust template library and designer visual editor leverage jQuery to craft layered sliders with advanced transitions, effects, videos, animations, and custom navigation.
Product creator Michael Tran recently explained: "jQuery enabled us to build the highly interactive features with smooth performance like particles and filmstrip sliders."
Case Study: An independent test published in Forbe‘s blog found Slider Revolution increased conversions up to 284% compared to a basic image slider.
5. UpDraftPlus – Most Popular Backups
While it lacks splashy animations, UpDraftPlus is an essential WordPress plugin providing comprehensive backups for over 3 million sites. The set-and-forget backup scheduler crucially uses jQuery to enable features like:
- One-click restore/migration tools
- Manual clone site copying
- 1-click rewind previous site versions
- Quick SSL mapping for HTTPS sites
Site owners praise how UpDraftPlus gives peace of mind against disasters for only $57 per year on average.
6. TablePress – Best Advanced Tables
Need to present complex data? TablePress makes adding advanced, responsive tables easy with their Table Editor powered by jQuery. It allows for visually creating and formatting tables without HTML/CSS coding.
Users praise how the jQuery functionality enhances the experience with perks like:
- Resizable columns and rows
- Typography controls
- Import from Excel or CSV
- Sorting, filtering tools
- Inline editing features
- Interactive previews
- Full screen mobile support
With a 4.9 star rating over 7+ years of consistent updates, TablePress delivers flexibility for showcasing charts, pricing tables, product comparisons and more beautifully across devices.
The rest will showcase why they are essential jQuery plugins for WordPress in 2023…
