This Tool Lets You Test WordPress Plugins Without Installing It

By Jake Rocheleau. in WordPress. Updated on October 18, 2022.

Everyone using WordPress knows about the mountain of plugins available online for free. There are so many out there it can be tough knowing what to try.

If you don’t want to install new WP setups just to test different plugins you’ll love Addendio. It’s a free tool for WordPress users that lets you try thousands of plugins for free through an online web app.

Just search for the plugin you want and click the blue “Try now” button.

When you select a plugin, Addendio opens a new window to select the WordPress sandbox environment. You can pick the WP version and the language of the install, and it asks for your email address, too.

The sandbox is created automatically, so you don’t need to check your inbox for the link. However, you cannot use throwaway emails because the system blocks those automatically.

By default, each new sandbox lasts 15 minutes before destroying itself. You can increase this time up to 60 minutes if you register a free account with Addendio.

Each sandbox takes about a minute to set up, then you get links to the main site & admin panel, along with the login credentials.

Addendio creates subdomains automatically with each new install and they’re built solely for testing plugins. I have no idea how they can handle massive traffic like this but the application works really well.

As of this writing, you can search through a massive list of 52,000+ plugins all from this one website. You can test pretty much every major free plugin on the market, from security plugins to SEO and caching plugins.

If you’re looking into a plugin and want a quick demo check out Addendio and see what you can find. Accounts are free, too, so if you want a longer testing period definitely sign up for a free account.