Sparkle Mouse
Cute particles that follow the cursor! ✨ (GPU-optimized)
Solid choice
Sparkle Mouse is a solid plugin choice in 2026, with a few things worth checking first. Was last updated 3 weeks ago, and scores 64/100 on our health check.
- Actively developed — last update 3 weeks ago
- 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
Download spikes usually follow a new release — each site that auto-updates counts as a download.
Rankings
Where Sparkle Mouse stands todayWordPress.org search rankings
Live position in the plugin search, top 100| Keyword | Position |
|---|---|
| animation | >100 |
| cursor | >100 |
| effect | >100 |
| particles | #63 |
| trail | >100 |
About Sparkle Mouse
From the official readme · v1.0.1Description
Sparkle Mouse draws pretty particles ✨
They can follow the cursor, or be full-screen.
With per-page controls!
From the creator of the desktop app. Video:
Features
- Built-in templates: Sparkles, Hearts Confetti, Flower Power, Fire, Snowflakes, Rainbow, Bubbles, and more.
- Add to an entire page, or scope with a CSS selector.
- Control Z-index, scale, and device filtering.
- Two templates per page.
- GPU-accelerated.
Want more?
Upgrade to Sparkle Mouse Pro (in Settings)!
Use sliders to customize the particles, and select your own images & GIFs.
Privacy
Sparkle Mouse uses Freemius (https://freemius.com) to manage licensing for the optional Pro upgrade and plugin updates. On first activation you’re shown a one-time screen with a clear Skip option. Choosing Skip means nothing below is sent, ever.
If you don’t skip, this is always sent for license and update delivery: your site’s homepage URL, the plugin’s version, and the Freemius SDK version, plus activation/deactivation/uninstall events.
No data is collected by Sparkle Mouse itself, and nothing is sent when the free/Lite plugin is used without connecting to Freemius. See Freemius’s privacy policy: https://freemius.com/privacy/
Installation
- Activate the plugin.
- Edit any post or page and find the “Sparkle Mouse” box in the sidebar.
Frequently asked questions
Will this slow down my site?
Sparkle Mouse is super optimized! And pages without Sparkle Mouse enabled aren’t affected at all. However, for older/mobile devices, it is good practice to avoid using high particle Amount and Life values, if possible. A larger CSS selector area also draws more computing power.
Do sparkles always have to spawn from the cursor?
No! You can set the Radius to 1, which will make them spawn all over the screen. And you can play around with the “Mouse State” setting: spawn while mouse is still, moving, or either.
Can I show sparkles on only part of a page?
Yes. Enter a selector in the CSS selector field (e.g. .my-container) to scope the effect to a specific element.
✨ Are the sparkles pretty? ✨
✨ Yes :) ✨
Changelog
Readme update.
1.0.1
- Readme update.
1.0.0
- Initial release.
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 Sparkle Mouse alternatives
All animation plugins →
FAQ
Sparkle Mouse: quick answers
Straight answers, pulled from live WordPress.org data.
Live data from WordPress.org · checked Oct 1, 2026
Is Sparkle Mouse free?
Yes. Sparkle Mouse is free to download and use from the official WordPress.org plugin directory.
Is Sparkle Mouse safe to use in 2026?
Sparkle Mouse is a solid plugin choice in 2026, with a few things worth checking first. Was last updated 3 weeks ago, and scores 64/100 on our health check.
How many websites use Sparkle Mouse?
Sparkle Mouse is active on <10 WordPress websites and has been downloaded 129 times since it launched in September 2026. It was downloaded 132 times in the last 30 days.
Does Sparkle Mouse work with WordPress 7.1?
Yes. The developer has tested Sparkle Mouse up to WordPress 7.1.2, the latest release. It requires WordPress 5.8 or newer.
What PHP version does Sparkle Mouse need?
Sparkle Mouse requires PHP 7.4 or higher. Most hosts run PHP 8.x today, so it works on any modern WordPress hosting.
When was Sparkle Mouse last updated?
The latest version, 1.0.1, was released on September 8, 2026 (3 weeks ago).
Who makes Sparkle Mouse?
Sparkle Mouse is developed and maintained by Max van Leeuwen.
What are the best alternatives to Sparkle Mouse?
The most popular alternatives to Sparkle Mouse are Blocks Animation: CSS Anima… (90K+ installs), Greenshift (70K+ installs) and UiCore Animate (40K+ installs).
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