Menu Rules
Context Manager does the same job as Menu Rules, but comes with many more features to save you time and unnecessary coding.
Consider an alternative
Menu Rules shows warning signs in 2026 — compare the alternatives below before installing. It runs on 10+ sites and was last updated 14 years ago, and scores 23/100 on our health check.
- Small user base (10+ active installs)
- Very few reviews so far
- No update in 13 years
- Only tested up to WordPress 3.5 (latest is 7.1)
How does it stack up?
Side-by-side on installs, updates, ratings & supportDaily downloads
Download spikes usually follow a new release — each site that auto-updates counts as a download.
Rankings
Where Menu Rules stands todayWordPress.org search rankings
Live position in the plugin search, top 100| Keyword | Position |
|---|---|
| context | >100 |
| menu | >100 |
| menus | >100 |
| parent menu | >100 |
| rules | >100 |
Version adoption
Share of active sites per release.
About Menu Rules
From the official readme · v1.2.2Description
This plugin has been replaced by Context Manager
Context Manager does the same job as Menu Rules, but comes with many more features to save you time and unnecessary coding.
Menu Rules can run alongside Context Manager while you migrate your rules across. Speak to me on Twitter if you need any help with the transfer.
About Menu Rules
In WordPress there’s no way to apply context to the menu system. Menu Rules solves this problem and gives you a framework to write your own menu extensions.
Example usage
You have an e-commerce website that has a custom post type called ‘products’. You have a page that lists products which is listed in your main menu. A user visits the page and the menu item becomes ‘active’. You click through to a product and the menu item loses its active state. This is how to fix it with menu rules:
- Install the Menu Rules plugin
- Add a menu rule
- Give it a meaningful name in the title field. This is just for administration purposes
- In the conditions field enter
is_singular( 'product' ) - Choose Emulate current page as a child but do not create a menu item. as the menu rule
- Find your products page in the menu dropdown
- Hit publish
Extending Menu Rules
- Create a class that extends
Menu_Rules_Handlerand includes ahandlermethod. - Write your custom functionality
- Register your class using
add_action( 'plugins_loaded', create_function( '', 'Menu_Rules::register( "Your_Menu_Rule_Class" );' ) );
Built-in rules are found in menu-rules/rules/
Support
If you’re stuck, ask me for help on Twitter.
Installation
- Download and unzip the folder from the WordPress plugins repository
- Upload the menu-rules folder into to the
/wp-content/plugins/directory - Activate the plugin through the ‘Plugins’ menu in WordPress
- Open the ‘Appearance’ menu item and click the ‘Menu Rules’ link
- Add a new menu rule and click ok.
Changelog
Menu Rules has been superseded by Context Manager - more features, less coding. This plugin is being deprecated.
1.2.2
- Upgrade notice to Context Manager
1.2.1
- Fixed fatal bug in PHP 5.4
1.2
- Conditions and Reactions divided into 2 meta boxes to improve usability
- Theme improvements
- Added description and footer options to PB Framework forms
- Moved plugin meta box styles into PB Framework
- Added default meta box display in PB Framework
- Added field setter for PB Framework meta box class
- Bugfix where frontend assets weren’t being loaded when on a new menu rule
- Bugfix in meta box get_fields()
- Bugfix for post updated messages
Note: Some stylesheets and Javascript files have had their handles changed.
1.1
- Added new force inactive parent rule
- Changed behaviour to one rule per item
- Minor enhancements to PB Framework
- Cleaned some unused code
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.
Best Menu Rules alternatives
All context plugins →FAQ
Menu Rules: quick answers
Straight answers, pulled from live WordPress.org data.
Live data from WordPress.org · checked Sep 28, 2026
Is Menu Rules free?
Yes. Menu Rules is free to download and use from the official WordPress.org plugin directory.
Is Menu Rules safe to use in 2026?
Menu Rules shows warning signs in 2026 — compare the alternatives below before installing. It runs on 10+ sites and was last updated 14 years ago, and scores 23/100 on our health check.
How many websites use Menu Rules?
Menu Rules is active on 10+ WordPress websites and has been downloaded 9,095 times since it launched in March 2012. It was downloaded 45 times in the last 30 days.
Does Menu Rules work with WordPress 7.1?
Menu Rules is officially tested up to WordPress 3.5.2, while the latest release is 7.1.2. It may still work, but try it on a staging site first.
When was Menu Rules last updated?
The latest version, 1.2.2, was released on December 17, 2012 (14 years ago).
Who makes Menu Rules?
Menu Rules is developed and maintained by Phill Brown.
What are the best alternatives to Menu Rules?
The most popular alternatives to Menu Rules are Conditional Menus (60K+ installs), Widget Context (30K+ installs) and Widgets Control (800+ installs).
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