NS Category Widget
A plugin to add widget for listing Categories and Taxonomies. Extending Default WordPress Category Widget.
Use with caution
NS Category Widget works, but test it on a staging site before relying on it in 2026. It runs on 1K+ sites, is rated 4.8/5 and was last updated 1 year ago, and scores 52/100 on our health check.
- Loved by users — 4.8/5 from 34 reviews
- No update in over a year
- Only tested up to WordPress 6.8 (latest is 7.1)
How does it stack up?
Side-by-side on installs, updates, ratings & support
Daily downloads
Download spikes usually follow a new release — each site that auto-updates counts as a download.
Rankings
Where NS Category Widget stands todayWordPress.org search rankings
Live position in the plugin search, top 100| Keyword | Position |
|---|---|
| category | #74 |
| listing | >100 |
| sidebar | >100 |
| taxonomy | >100 |
| widget | >100 |
Version adoption
Share of active sites per release.
Rating breakdown
★★★★★★★★★★ 4.8 from 34 reviews
About NS Category Widget
From the official readme · v4.1.6Description
Are you frustrated by the lack of customization options in default Category widget in WordPress? Then this plugin is for you. Works in similar fashion but with several customization options. Cheers !
Installation
Using The WordPress Dashboard
- Navigate to the ‘Add New’ Plugin Dashboard
- Select ‘ns-category-widget.zip’ from your computer
- Install
- Activate the plugin on the WordPress Plugin Dashboard
- Place the ‘NS Category Widget’ into a Widget area through the ‘Appearance -> Widgets’ menu in WordPress.
Using FTP
- Extract ‘ns-category-widget.zip’ to your computer
- Upload the ‘ns-category-widget’ directory to your ‘/wp-content/plugins/’ directory
- Activate the plugin on the WordPress Plugins dashboard
- Place the ‘NS Category Widget’ into a Widget area through the ‘Appearance -> Widgets’ menu in WordPress.
Frequently asked questions
Is only Category is supported in listing?
You can list Category as well as Custom Taxonomy also.
There is something cool you could add…
Nice, make a post on the Support Forum and let us know.
Changelog
Breaking: Complete revamp. Bumped minimum requirement of WP and PHP
4.1.6 – 12 Sep 2025
- Fix contributors
4.1.5 – 10 Sep 2025
- Remove load_plugin_textdomain() call
- WP Compatibility
4.1.4 – 12 Jan 2025
- Update packages
4.1.3 – 30 Jul 2024
- Update dependencies
4.1.2 – 5 Jul 2024
- Fix PHP error
4.0.1 – 30 Jun 2024
- Fix tree style
Screenshots
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 NS Category Widget alternatives
All category plugins →
FAQ
NS Category Widget: quick answers
Straight answers, pulled from live WordPress.org data.
Live data from WordPress.org · checked Oct 14, 2026
Is NS Category Widget free?
Yes. NS Category Widget is free to download and use from the official WordPress.org plugin directory.
Is NS Category Widget safe to use in 2026?
NS Category Widget works, but test it on a staging site before relying on it in 2026. It runs on 1K+ sites, is rated 4.8/5 and was last updated 1 year ago, and scores 52/100 on our health check.
How many websites use NS Category Widget?
NS Category Widget is active on 1K+ WordPress websites and has been downloaded 43,543 times since it launched in December 2013. It was downloaded 221 times in the last 30 days.
Does NS Category Widget work with WordPress 7.1?
NS Category Widget is officially tested up to WordPress 6.8.11, while the latest release is 7.1.3. It may still work, but try it on a staging site first.
What PHP version does NS Category Widget need?
NS Category Widget requires PHP 7.2.24 or higher. Most hosts run PHP 8.x today, so it works on any modern WordPress hosting.
When was NS Category Widget last updated?
The latest version, 4.1.6, was released on September 12, 2025 (1 year ago).
Who makes NS Category Widget?
NS Category Widget is developed and maintained by Nilambar Sharma.
What are the best alternatives to NS Category Widget?
The most popular alternatives to NS Category Widget are Pages with category and tag (50K+ installs), Search & Filter (50K+ installs) and PublishPress Taxonomies (40K+ installs).
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