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Category Submenu Builder icon
Actively maintained Tested with WP 7.1 #6 in category menu

Category Submenu Builder

Build WordPress and WooCommerce category menus, submenus, mega menus, and category navigation with visual builder and sync tools.

Active installs<10New
Downloads · 30d90▼ -45.1% vs prev. 30d
Rating5/51 reviews
Health score67/100Good
All-time downloads184Since Aug 2026
Support resolved—No recent threads
RequiresWP 5.8PHP 7.4+
Downloads · 7d17▼ -22.7% week over week
Our verdict

Solid choice

Category Submenu Builder is a solid plugin choice in 2026, with a few things worth checking first. Is rated 5/5 and was last updated 1 month ago, and scores 67/100 on our health check.

  • Tested with the latest WordPress (7.1)
  • Small user base (<10 active installs)
  • Very few reviews so far

How does it stack up?

Side-by-side on installs, updates, ratings & support

Daily downloads

112334Aug 22Sep 9Sep 28
Yesterday0
Daily average (1y)5
Peak day46Aug 22, 2026
Last 12 months184

Download spikes usually follow a new release — each site that auto-updates counts as a download.

Rankings

Where Category Submenu Builder stands today

WordPress.org search rankings

Live position in the plugin search, top 100
KeywordPositionCompeting pluginsCategory
category menu >100 8,275 Best category menu plugins →
category navigation >100 2,435 Best category navigation plugins →
menu builder >100 5,706 Best menu builder plugins →
submenu #25 1,449 Best submenu plugins →
woocommerce >100 10,000 Best woocommerce plugins →

Rating breakdown

★★★★★★★★★★ 5 from 1 reviews

  • 5★100.0%
  • 4★0.00%
  • 3★0.00%
  • 2★0.00%
  • 1★0.00%

About Category Submenu Builder

From the official readme · v3.0.0

Description

Category Submenu Builder is a WordPress category menu and submenu builder for organizing post categories or WooCommerce product categories into useful navigation structures. Build category menus, nested submenus, mega menus, and category navigation, then display or synchronize them with shortcodes, blocks, widgets, and native WordPress menus.

It is designed for site owners who need a category menu builder for blogs, content sites, and WooCommerce stores without depending on an external service.

Main features

  • Create a main category and multiple subcategories in one operation.
  • Reorder and manage category groups from a dedicated visual category builder.
  • Build WordPress category menus and WooCommerce category navigation with nested submenu structures.
  • Category Manager with search, edit, delete, move, duplicate, bulk actions, and recovery snapshots.
  • Category analytics and health checks for duplicate names, invalid slugs, orphaned relationships, empty categories, and menu usage.
  • Safe repair tools with automatic lightweight backups before selected repairs.
  • WooCommerce product category auto-assignment rules based on title, SKU, tags, and configured keywords.
  • Product/post count badges with zero-count and placement controls.
  • Category display controls for hidden, featured, badge, schedule, SEO title, SEO description, and short description metadata.
  • WordPress Appearance > Menus integration with category highlighting, nesting, duplicate cleanup, and menu synchronization.
  • Visual Mega Menu settings with columns, images, counts, badges, limits, and hover behavior.
  • Smart utilities including shortcode generation, category intelligence, badge suggestions, and one-click storefront setup.
  • Storefront layout presets plus a theme compatibility checker.
  • Gutenberg blocks and Elementor integration when those editors are available.
  • JSON backup/export/import and CSV export.
  • CSV, TXT, TSV, and XLSX category import with preview, duplicate handling, rollback, and import history.
  • Security Center with upload validation, activity history, permission checks, and plugin file integrity checks.
  • Performance tools with local cache management and diagnostics.
  • Optional uninstall cleanup. Category/product/post content is preserved; plugin metadata is removed only when the administrator explicitly enables cleanup.

Shortcodes

  • [wpcb_menu]
  • [wpcb_category_grid]
  • [wpcb_category_cards]
  • [wpcb_featured_categories]
  • [wpcb_category_carousel]
  • [wpcb_mobile_category_bar]
  • [wpcb_mobile_category_drawer]
  • [wpcb_category_search]
  • [wpcb_mega_menu]

Common options include hide_empty, show_count, depth, columns, limit, show_images, show_badges, style, and icon where supported.

Privacy and external services

The plugin does not send analytics, telemetry, category data, or user data to an external service. Category, menu, backup, diagnostics, and settings operations run on the WordPress site.

Source code

Human-readable PHP and JavaScript are included in the plugin package. Readable source counterparts are also included for minified production assets so the shipped code can be reviewed and maintained.

Installation

  1. In WordPress, go to Plugins > Add New > Upload Plugin.
  2. Upload the plugin ZIP and activate it.
  3. If WooCommerce is active, open WooCommerce > Category Builder. Otherwise open Posts > Category Builder.
  4. Choose the target category location in Settings.
  5. Create or arrange category groups in Builder.
  6. Add [wpcb_menu] or another provided shortcode where you want the category navigation to appear.

Frequently asked questions

Does WooCommerce have to be installed?

No. When WooCommerce product categories are available the plugin can build WooCommerce category menus and submenus with them; otherwise it can work with normal WordPress post categories.

Can I build a WooCommerce category menu?

Yes. When WooCommerce is active, the plugin can organize product categories into nested category navigation, synchronize selected WordPress menus, and display category structures with the provided shortcodes and integrations.

Can I build nested submenus and a mega menu?

Yes. The builder supports hierarchical category structures, nested submenu organization, and visual mega menu settings for category navigation.

Does uninstalling delete my categories or products?

No. Site content is preserved. Optional plugin metadata cleanup runs only when the administrator enables the uninstall cleanup setting before uninstalling.

Does the plugin contact an external API?

No external API is required for the included functionality.

Can I use the native WordPress menu editor?

Yes. The plugin includes tools for adding and nesting category items in WordPress menus and can synchronize a selected menu after category changes.

Changelog

Initial WordPress.org-ready public release.

3.0.0

  • Initial WordPress.org-ready public release.
  • Hardened form handling with nonce verification, input validation, sanitization, and output escaping.
  • Added internationalization translator context and updated deprecated WordPress API/date handling.
  • Added human-readable source counterparts for production assets.
  • Preserved category, menu, shortcode, backup, import, analytics, automation, design, integration, performance, and security functionality.
  • Added clear admin text rendering for improved readability.

Full changelog on WordPress.org →

Screenshots

Builder dashboard for creating a main category, adding subcategories, and arranging the hierarchy for menu sync.
Builder dashboard for creating a main category, adding subcategories, and arranging the…
Category Manager for searching, reviewing, moving, duplicating, and managing category records.
Category Manager for searching, reviewing, moving, duplicating, and managing category…
Analytics view with category health checks for duplicate names, slugs, orphaned relationships, empty categories, and menu usage.
Analytics view with category health checks for duplicate names, slugs, orphaned…
Backup, import, export, Security Center, Gutenberg, and Elementor integration tools.
Backup, import, export, Security Center, Gutenberg, and Elementor integration tools.
Tutorial step 1: Open Category Builder from the WordPress admin menu to begin creating a category structure.
Tutorial step 1: Open Category Builder from the WordPress admin menu to begin creating a…
Tutorial step 2: Create the main category that will act as the parent for the submenu group.
Tutorial step 2: Create the main category that will act as the parent for the submenu…
Tutorial step 3: Add submenu categories and build the nested hierarchy under the main category.
Tutorial step 3: Add submenu categories and build the nested hierarchy under the main…
Tutorial step 4: Save the category structure after reviewing the main category and submenu arrangement.
Tutorial step 4: Save the category structure after reviewing the main category and…
Tutorial step 5: Add the completed category group to a selected WordPress navigation menu.
Tutorial step 5: Add the completed category group to a selected WordPress navigation menu.

For developers

Is this your plugin? Show off the numbers.

Add a live badge to your site, docs or GitHub README. It updates on its own — no account needed.

Active installs badge Rating badge Health score badge

Best Category Submenu Builder alternatives

All category menu plugins →

FAQ

Category Submenu Builder: quick answers

Straight answers, pulled from live WordPress.org data.

Live data from WordPress.org · checked Sep 29, 2026

Is Category Submenu Builder free?

Yes. Category Submenu Builder is free to download and use from the official WordPress.org plugin directory.

Is Category Submenu Builder safe to use in 2026?

Category Submenu Builder is a solid plugin choice in 2026, with a few things worth checking first. Is rated 5/5 and was last updated 1 month ago, and scores 67/100 on our health check.

How many websites use Category Submenu Builder?

Category Submenu Builder is active on <10 WordPress websites and has been downloaded 184 times since it launched in August 2026. It was downloaded 90 times in the last 30 days.

Does Category Submenu Builder work with WordPress 7.1?

Yes. The developer has tested Category Submenu Builder up to WordPress 7.1.2, the latest release. It requires WordPress 5.8 or newer.

What PHP version does Category Submenu Builder need?

Category Submenu Builder requires PHP 7.4 or higher. Most hosts run PHP 8.x today, so it works on any modern WordPress hosting.

When was Category Submenu Builder last updated?

The latest version, 3.0.0, was released on August 23, 2026 (1 month ago).

Who makes Category Submenu Builder?

Category Submenu Builder is developed and maintained by rejoyan9009.

What are the best alternatives to Category Submenu Builder?

The most popular alternatives to Category Submenu Builder are Automatically Hierarchic Ca… (2K+ installs), WP Spry Menu (50+ installs) and NBTech Woomenu (10+ installs).

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