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WP-KaTeX icon
Possibly abandoned Tested up to 5.2.28 #1 in equation

WP-KaTeX

Integrates the super-fast KaTeX LaTeX equation typesetting engine with WordPress. Create beautiful, yet performant math in your posts and pages.

Active installs700+100+ tier
Downloads · 30d231▲ +11.1% vs prev. 30d
Rating4.6/511 reviews
Health score37/100At risk
All-time downloads23.4KSince Oct 2014
Support resolved—No recent threads
RequiresWP 3.9PHP 5.3+
Downloads · 7d50▼ -28.6% week over week
Our verdict

Consider an alternative

WP-KaTeX shows warning signs in 2026 — compare the alternatives below before installing. It runs on 700+ sites, is rated 4.6/5 and was last updated 7 years ago, and scores 37/100 on our health check.

  • Small user base (700+ active installs)
  • No update in 7 years
  • Only tested up to WordPress 5.2 (latest is 7.1)

How does it stack up?

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

Daily downloads

51015Jun 30Aug 13Sep 27
Yesterday7
Daily average (1y)5
Peak day21Sep 14, 2026
Last 12 months2K

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

Rankings

Where WP-KaTeX stands today

WordPress.org search rankings

Live position in the plugin search, top 100
KeywordPositionCompeting pluginsCategory
equation #45 53 Best equation plugins →
katex #11 12 Best katex plugins →
latex #42 70 Best latex plugins →
math >100 1,720 Best math plugins →
MathJaX #15 19 Best MathJaX plugins →

Version adoption

Share of active sites per release.

  • 1.1198.1%
  • 1.81.9%

Rating breakdown

★★★★★★★★★★ 4.6 from 11 reviews

  • 5★90.9%
  • 4★0.00%
  • 3★0.00%
  • 2★0.00%
  • 1★9.1%

About WP-KaTeX

From the official readme · v1.11.0

Description

The KaTeX WordPress plugin integrates the super-fast KaTeX math typesetting engine with your WordPress website. The plugin allows you to put LaTeX in a [latex]...[/latex] shortcode, and beautiful math appears on your post or page.

The plugin also has an option to use the excellent jsDelivr CDN to load the KaTeX scripts, further increasing the performance of the plugin.

Equations in [latex display="true"]...[/latex] will be rendered in display mode (rather than inline mode) and centered on its own line.

Plugin Website

Installation

  1. Upload the katex folder to the /wp-content/plugins/ directory
  2. Activate the plugin through the ‘Plugins’ menu in WordPress
  3. Disable any plugins that may interfere with this plugin, such as Jetpack’s Beautiful Math module
  4. Use the [latex] shortcode in your posts and pages

Changelog

Lots of commands and features now supported

1.11.0

  • Updated KaTeX library to 0.11.0

    • Added:

      • BREAKING CHANGE: trust setting to indicate whether input text is trusted (#1794)
        • \href and \url will break without adjusting the trust setting
        • This is currently not supported by the plugin
      • Add test for double square brackets to katex-spec (#1956)
      • Add option to render only MathML so that its visible (#1966)
      • Support {smallmatrix}, {subarray}, and \substack (#1969)
      • Enable minRuleThickness in rendering options (#1964)
      • Add \plim (#1952)
      • Support Unicode \digamma (#2010)
      • Support \operatorname* (#1899)
      • Support \includegraphics, with appropriate trust setting (#2053)
    • Changed:

      • Document mhchem \cf not supported (use \ce instead) (#2008)
      • Unicode characters in math render in text mode (#2040)
    • Fixed:

      • Improve output of fonts in MathML (#1965)
      • Fix \pmb (#1924)
      • \color affects following \right, put array cells in their own groups (#1845)
      • Improve MathML for classes (#1929)
      • Prevent gaps in tall delimiters (#1986)
      • Fix \sqrt SVG path (#2009)
      • Do not force sizing groups to display inline-block (#2044)
      • Fix font choice in operators like \log (e.g. \boldsymbol{\log}) (#2041)
      • Fix argument font sizing in \fbox and \raisebox, fix font sizing in \TeX, \LaTeX, \KaTeX (#1787)
  • Updated KaTeX library to 0.10.2

    • Added:

      • Approximate font metrics only when metrics don’t exist (#1898)
      • Add KaTeX version to stylesheet and troubleshooting guide (#1893)
      • Add symbol double square brackets (#1947, #1954)
      • Support double-square curly braces (#1953)
    • Changed:

      • Added ‘katex-element’ (#1905)
      • Include extensions mhchem & copy-tex in home-page (#1932)
    • Fixed:

      • Fix \Rho (#1870)
      • Fix nested \dfrac (#1825)
      • Improve MathML accents (#1877)
      • Improve MathML for \overset, \stackrel, and \underset (#1886)
      • Fix \not (U+E020) RBearing (width) (#1878)
      • Fix ApplyFunction character (#1890)
      • Improve MathML for \limits (#1897)
      • Improve MathML for \hphantom and \vphantom (#1883)
      • Improve MathML for \coloneqq, \dblcolon, \eqcolon, and \eqqcolon (#1889)
      • Improve MathML for \brace (#1884)
      • Fix \middle spacing (#1906)
      • Get a tall \middle\vert from MathML (#1911)
      • Improve more coloneq (#1902)
      • Make \smallint small in \displaystyle (#1907)
      • Improve MathML for characters in Unicode private use area (#1908)
      • Improve MathML for extensible arrows (#1901)
      • Improve MathML for \rule (#1912)
      • Improve MathML for fractions (#1882)
      • Improve MathML for \tag (#1915)
      • Improve MathML for \colorbox and \fcolorbox (#1914)
      • Improve MathML for environments (#1910)
      • Improve MathML for \genfrac barline (#1925)
      • Support \textup and \textmd (#1921)
      • Improve MathML for \not (#1923)
      • Improve MathML for \Bbbk (#1930)
      • Prevent inadvertent tall delims (#1948)
    • Removed

      • Re-added code for \includegraphics but disabled the function until trust settings is merged (#1951)

1.10.1

  • Updated KaTeX library to 0.10.1

    • Added

      • ECMAScript module for contrib (#1624)
      • mhchem extension (#1436)
      • auto-render: optional pre-process callback (#1784)
      • \argmax and \argmin (#1820)
      • \textbackslash and \textasciicircum (#1839)
      • leqno and fleqn support (#1814)
    • Fixed

      • Support blackboard bold in text mode (#1757)
      • Fix spacings in semisimple groups (#1706)
      • Fix parsing comments (#1789)
      • Fix \ and \newline after operator (#1796)
      • Fix \hphantom width (#1809)
      • Remove double encoding in MathML (#1813)
      • Fix Unicode bigcup (#1836)
      • Fix \genfrac w/ empty delimiter arguments (#1816)
      • \fbox inherits default color (#1847)
      • Fix \not and \neq on Chrome 72 (#1852)

1.10.0

  • Updated KaTeX library to 0.10.0
    • Added
      • Unicode: °, delimiters, 1D400-1D7FF, \ll, \lll, ≘≙≚≛≝≞≟, Unicode Mathematical Alphanumeric Symbols, ⟂ ¬ ⊨ ‼ ∌ ≲ ⩽ ⪅ ≶ ⋚ ⪋, corner, ⟦⟧ (#1203, #1207, #1260, #1273, #1274, #1232, #1377, #1389, #1459, #1750)
      • \yen support on text mode (#1208)
      • \( (#1213)
      • Add defineSymbol to the main katex object (#1263)
      • Capital Greek letters (#1283, #1285)
      • Add version to katex object (#1279, #1475)
      • \copyright, \textregistered, \textcircled (#1073)
      • Tilde \textasciitilde (#1286)
      • Line breaks for inline formulas (#1287)
      • \hline (#1306)
      • Top-level \newline and \\ in inline math (#1298)
      • Strict mode, unicode text in math mode (#1117, #1278)
      • Strict setting for \newline display-mode behavior (#1314)
      • Allow all Unicode symbols in nonstrict mode (#1217)
      • \tag, \tag*, and \gdef (#1309)
      • \def, \gdef, and \global\def (#1348, #1425)
      • Change default maxExpand limit to 1000 (#1383)
      • \cfrac (#1392)
      • \arraystretch as a macro definition (#1381)
      • Add ability to create a dashed vertical line in arrays, using ‘:’ (#1395)
      • \widecheck (#1406)
      • \hdashline (#1407)
      • \newcommand, \renewcommand, \providecommand (#1382)
      • Add a utility function (setFontMetrics) to extend builtin fontMetrics (#1269)
      • \oiint and \oiiint (#1430)
      • Remove match-at dependency, use RegExp for lexer (#1447)
      • \brace and \brack (#1453)
      • Allow only allowed protocols in \href (#1440)
        • BREAKING CHANGE: Only “http”, “https”, “mailto”, and relative URLs are allowed in \href and \url by default.
      • \genfrac and \above (#1455, #1458)
      • \char character escaping and nicer MathML via \html@mathml (#1454)
      • \@binrel (#1487)
      • \pmb (#1418)
      • 6-digit color without # (#1690)
      • \mathnormal (#1700)
      • \lparen and \rparen (#1741)
      • \> (#1752)
    • Fixed:
      • Fix nested math mode in non-default text mode (#1111)
      • Fix contenteditable mode (#1179)
      • Work around negative space bug in Chrome (#1194)
      • Fix \nobreakspace (#1200)
      • Fix instant mode switching for $, (, \text (#1213)
      • Add metrics for \S and \P (#1224)
      • Fix anchor.toMarkup (#1246)
      • Specify height for SVG elements (#1252)
      • Include Bold-Italic fonts for \boldsymbol (#1257)
      • Fix space width in \texttt (#1261)
      • Fix \underset (#1277)
      • Remove special \verb space handling now that space is in Typewriter-Regular (#1258)
      • Switch makeGlue from .mord .rule to .mspace (#1295)
      • Fix ~ in \verb (#1286)
      • Stop throwing ParseError when throwOnError is false (#1169, #1302, #1308)
      • Fix extensible arrow sup vertical alignment (#1256)
      • Adjust \underset alignment and spacing (#1290)
      • Revert frac-lines and \rule to borders (min-height) (#1249, #1417, #1594)
      • Fix vertical alignment of \underbrace (#1304)
      • Use one strut instead of two (#1307)
      • Fix MacroExpander space handling (#1314)
      • Cleanup MathML <mrow>, <mtext>, <mn> (#1338)
      • Fix lap vertical alignment. (#1162)
      • Fix nested \tfrac (#1370)
      • Fix \coloneq etc (#1372)
      • Fix wide character spacing (#1371)
      • Fix auto-render \[…] bug (#1375)
      • Rewrite spacing commands as macros (#1156)
      • Enable output modules to be used in browser or Node (#1401)
      • Add vertical kern to \vdots (#1402)
      • Implement \neq and \notin via macros like LaTeX’s (#1400, #1499)
      • Improve \cancel (#1398)
      • Fix ligatures vs. \tt (#1379)
      • Implement \colon as amsmath does (#1410)
      • Automatic mrel/mbin spacing for \boldsymbol (#1388)
      • Phantom text (#1449)
      • Fix arrowheads for mhchem (#1451)
      • Set documentFragment.style to empty object (#1471)
      • Remove tree cloning before building HTML (#1470)
      • Fix \operatorname to support general math functions (#1461)
      • Use \not character without left side-bearing correction (#1267)
      • Remove codes that require expensive polyfill (#1469, #1563, #1591, #1597)
      • Fix \not vertical alignment (#1497)
      • Comments without terminating newlines, \href fixes, \url support (#1529)
      • Fix \textdaggerdbl (#1539)
      • Fix \neq (#1548, #1574)
      • Fix wide characters (#1549)
      • Fix \fbox (#1550)
      • Fix \Large roots (#1485)
      • Remove duplicate defineFunction invocation for \mathop (#1701)
      • Fix tag positioning to live within katex-html parent (#1721)
      • Fix \mathit font and italic correction (#1700)

1.9.1

  • Fix bug causing all equations to show in display style

1.9.0

  • Code cleanup and other minor improvements
  • Updated KaTeX library to 0.9.0
    • Fixed:
      • Fixed exponential behavior in accent production. #834
      • Use mpadded for \raisebox MathML. #876
      • Array/Matrix environments do not trim newlines. Fixed #337. PR is #479.
      • Fixed space handling. #912
      • Prevents disappearing fraction lines. #931
      • Fixed the spacing between columns in the {aligned} environment. #942
      • Fixed issue where the {aligned} environment skips the last line if the first column is empty. #949
      • Appended ApplyFunction to math functions in MathML. #960
      • Changed \undertilde to \utilde. #948
      • Changed frac-line from border to full span. #976
      • Avoid negative space in \bmod. #984
      • Stacking text commands. #1009
      • Fixed \vec by replacing the combining font glyph with an SVG. #1018
      • Made accents zero width. #1033
      • Fixed frac-line. #1025
      • Implemented correct macros for liminf and limsup. Fixed #111
      • \kern generates right-margin instead of left-margin. Fixed #995
      • Do not inherit SVG style properties from the environment. #1089
      • Update fonts and metrics so that accents are positioned correctly #1094
      • Use correct spacing with tight styles. See #1106 for more details.
      • Improved JS spacing #1103
      • Fixed handling of Unicode characters ð, Å, å #1157
      • Padding over \sqrt and Paths for frac-line #1143
    • Added:
      • Added \smash, laps, spaces, and phantoms. #833
      • Support for \raisebox, \operatorname, \And, \colorbox, \fcolorbox and \verb.
      • Added support for comments.
      • Added Unicode Relations and Unicode Symbol support. Supports Unicode ∴, ∵, \mid, Arrows, Big Operators, Binary Operators, Negated Relations.
      • Implemented the alignedat environment for flexible math spacing. #930
      • Implemented \mathchoice command. #969
      • Implemented \href command. #923
      • \hspace*, \@ifstar, \@ifnextchar, \@firstoftwo (#975)
      • Added \notni character ∌. #710
      • \kern fixed and support \hskip, \TeX, \LaTeX, \KaTeX. See #974
      • Supported Unicode middle dot and Unicode accents.
      • Added basic support for Indic scripts in addition to CJK. #1060
      • Added support for bold italic symbols. #1011
      • add \ae, \AE, \oe, \OE, \o, \O, \ss with unicode support for those characters in text mode. #1030
      • Added \i and \j for text mode. #1029
      • Implemented \TextOrMath, @secondoftwo. #1024
      • Added support for \aa, \AA, \lq, \rq, \lbrack, \rbrack #1069
      • Added support for more scripts in \text{} environments such as Czech, Georgian, Hungarian, Turkish. #1076
      • add Main-BoldItalic font to allow nesting of \textit and \textbf
      • Added \S and \P #1110
      • Italic Greek capital letters #1118
      • Added support for \mathring #1125
      • Added support for unicode angle brackets, single vertical bar, double vertical bar #1123
      • Added support for Reaction Arrows #1078
      • Added \nobreakspace #1145
      • Added support for Unicode colon equals ≔ #1151
      • Added support for \underline in text mode #1159
    • Changed:
      • Advanced macro support and magic \dots. #794
      • Allow sizing commands inside optional groups. #885
      • Upgraded \sqrt zoom and width. #890
      • Single-character macros like active characters. #973
      • Changed \xLongequal to \xlongequal. #997
      • Enable spacing functions in text mode #1139
    • Breaking changes:
      • \llap and \rlap now render contents in math mode. Use \mathllap (new) and \mathrlap (new) if you need the previous behavior.

1.8.3

  • Updated KaTeX library to 0.8.0
    • Breaking changes:
      • Implicit \color, explicitly grouped \textcolor
    • New features:
      • added some international operators (\arctg, \arcctg, \ch, \cosec, \cotg, \ctg, \cth, \sh, \tanh, \tg, \th)
      • Old font command support: \rm, \sf, \tt, \bf, \it
      • Builtin macros, macro arguments, \overset and \underset
      • Add \iff, \implies, \impliedby support
      • Support <, >, | and many \text... commands in text mode
      • Implement $...$ via styling node
      • Support Windows high-contrast mode
      • Add \jot lineskip to aligned environment, switch contents to displaystyle, and add gathered
      • Fix high contrast mode better, thanks to @GeeLaw
      • Support stretchy wide elements.
      • Implement \coloneqq, \colonequals, etc. based on mathtools and colonequals
      • Support absolute TeX units
    • Other changes:
      • Revert “Remove trailing commas for IE 9 compatibility”
      • Fix all AMS mathord symbols
      • Fix x'^2
      • Use utils.deflt for Settings
      • Fix font typo math -> main
      • Fix spaces before \middle
      • Refactor and comment space splicing code
      • Fix issue with multiple superscripts.
      • Fix interaction between styles and sizes.
      • Vertically center single-character \mathop.
      • Correct handling of unbraced kerns followed by spaces.
      • Associate font metrics with Options, not Style.
      • Set maxFontSize on rules.
      • Correct computation of TeX sizes.
      • Use \displaystyle within \over/\underbrace
      • Shrinkwrap vlists in table-like CSS.
      • Solve Safari rendering issues with font-size overrides.
      • Improve rule coding, including for \sqrt.
  • Updated KaTeX library to 0.8.1
  • Updated KaTeX library to 0.8.2
    • New features:
      • Accept all existing Greek letters using unicode characters in math mode
    • Bug fixes:
      • Fix MathML output for ' and large operators with limits
      • Fix color support for stretchy, strikethrough, and fbox
  • Updated KaTeX library to 0.8.3
    • New features:
      • Add latin-1 letters as math symbols
      • Support CJK full-width punctuation + Unicode dots
      • Support for ' ` ^ ~ = \u . " \r \H \v text-mode accents
      • Added support for \not
    • Bug fixes:
      • Use inline SVG for stretchy elements
      • Improve \sqrt

Full changelog on WordPress.org →

Screenshots

Various equations rendered with WP-KaTeX
Various equations rendered with WP-KaTeX

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FAQ

WP-KaTeX: quick answers

Straight answers, pulled from live WordPress.org data.

Live data from WordPress.org · checked Sep 28, 2026

Is WP-KaTeX free?

Yes. WP-KaTeX is free to download and use from the official WordPress.org plugin directory.

Is WP-KaTeX safe to use in 2026?

WP-KaTeX shows warning signs in 2026 — compare the alternatives below before installing. It runs on 700+ sites, is rated 4.6/5 and was last updated 7 years ago, and scores 37/100 on our health check.

How many websites use WP-KaTeX?

WP-KaTeX is active on 700+ WordPress websites and has been downloaded 23,409 times since it launched in October 2014. It was downloaded 231 times in the last 30 days.

Does WP-KaTeX work with WordPress 7.1?

WP-KaTeX is officially tested up to WordPress 5.2.28, while the latest release is 7.1.2. It may still work, but try it on a staging site first.

What PHP version does WP-KaTeX need?

WP-KaTeX requires PHP 5.3 or higher. Most hosts run PHP 8.x today, so it works on any modern WordPress hosting.

When was WP-KaTeX last updated?

The latest version, 1.11.0, was released on August 14, 2019 (7 years ago).

Who makes WP-KaTeX?

WP-KaTeX is developed and maintained by ascom.

What are the best alternatives to WP-KaTeX?

The most popular alternatives to WP-KaTeX are Youngwhan's Simple Latex (200+ installs), CFF Fitness and Health Oper… (60+ installs) and Direct math input with Math… (30+ installs).

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