10 Best Blocks Plugins for WordPress 2023

Searching for the best WordPress blocks plugins to add new blocks to the WordPress editor (aka Gutenberg)?

One of the great things about the block editor is that you can extend it with all kinds of new content and layout blocks, which gives you the ability to create more flexible designs.

In this post, we’ve collected ten of our favorite plugins that add new blocks. And guess what — every single one of these plugins is either 100% free or offers a generous free version in addition to a paid upgrade.

By the end of this post, you’ll be able to create more flexible layouts and get access to a huge array of content blocks for testimonials, timelines, recent posts, and lots, lots more.

Let’s dig in.

1. Genesis Blocks

Genesis Blocks is a relaunch of what was previously known as Atomic Blocks (which still exists at WordPress.org if you want to see the older reviews).

As the name suggests, it comes from StudioPress, makers of the popular Genesis Framework (and also part of the WP Engine family). As you’d expect from something bearing the Genesis name, it offers rock-solid, well-thought-out features that aim to bring more of a page building experience to the block editor.

Quick note – you don’t need to use the Genesis Framework theme to use Genesis Blocks, though the two do pair well together.

In total, the free version of Genesis Blocks adds 15 new blocks to the editor. The blocks come in a nice mix of fundamental layout blocks and also new content blocks.

For example, to help you control the layout of your designs, you’ll get a section & layout block, a container block, and a flexible spacer & divider block. But then you’ll also get useful content blocks such as pricing, newsletter, author profile, and testimonial blocks.

All of the blocks also come with built-in Google AMP support, which is great if you’re using AMP.

If you want even more features, there’s also a premium version called Genesis Pro that adds new templates and features to the editor. You’ll get:

• 56+ section templates
• 26+ full-page templates
• Option to save and reuse your own templates
• Block-level user permissions

Genesis Pro also gets you access to the Genesis Framework and all 35+ StudioPress child themes. Genesis Pro costs $30 per month for everything.

2. Ultimate Addons for Gutenberg

Ultimate Addons for Gutenberg is a free block plugin from Brainstorm Force, the same company behind the popular Astra theme and Ultimate Addons for Elementor/Beaver Builder.

It adds 25+ new blocks to the editor, including both layout and content blocks.

To control the layouts of your Gutenberg designs, the plugin gives you an Advanced Columns block with more control over columns, as well as shape dividers. There’s also a Section block that lets you group different blocks together.

Ultimate Addons for Gutenberg also comes with multiple blocks to help you display your most recent blog posts in different layouts, including:

• Grid
• Masonry
• Timeline (list)
• Carousel

Other notable blocks include:

• Content Timeline – display custom content on a unique timeline layout.
• Form Stylers – style and embed forms from Contact Form 7 or Gravity Forms.
• Buttons – create more advanced buttons with multiple blocks including Multi Buttons and Marketing Button.
• Table of Contents – automatically generate a table of contents based on the headings in your post.
• Price List/Restaurant Menu – create a great-looking restaurant menu.

You can use Ultimate Addons for Gutenberg with any WordPress theme. But if you are using the Astra theme, Astra comes with 20+ importable demo sites built with the block editor and blocks from Ultimate Addons for Gutenberg.

Ultimate Addons for Gutenberg is 100% free.

3. PublishPress Blocks

PublishPress Blocks (previously called Advanced Gutenberg) is a WordPress block plugin that adds both new blocks and features to the Gutenberg editor.

I’ll cover the blocks in a second, but let’s start with one of the most unique things about this plugin.

With PublishPress Blocks, you can enable/disable specific blocks from showing up in the editor, including blocks from other block plugins. You can also create different profiles and assign them access to different blocks.

For example, you could give admins access to all blocks, while limiting the blocks that authors have access to. This becomes especially helpful if you’re using multiple block plugins, as it lets you prevent unnecessary blocks from cluttering up the interface.

You also get some other smaller features like:

• Custom CSS styles for paragraph blocks.
• Option to define Gutenberg editor size.

Beyond those new features, you also get access to 27+ new blocks.

Some of the most notable new blocks include:

• Login & Register – let users sign up or log in to your site using a block.
• Search Bar – add a search bar that visitors can use to search using the default WordPress search function.
• Advanced Table – create advanced HTML tables with more options.
• Advanced Columns – get more control over your column layouts.
• Email Opt-in – collect emails and export them as a CSV file.

PublishPress Blocks is 100% free.

4. Stackable

Stackable is another popular Gutenberg block plugin that comes in both a free core version at WordPress.org as well as a premium version with more features.

It includes an array of new blocks, features, and templates. Specifically:

• 27+ new blocks
• 58+ block layouts
• 72+ pre-set design sections

Other general features include:

• Detailed typography options
• Tons of shape/blob dividers for each block

Some of the notable content blocks include:

• Posts (includes lots of different ways to showcase your most recent posts)
• Counter
• Testimonial
• Pricing table
• Team members
• Feature grid

Stackable’s blocks themselves all have really detailed settings, which I think is something that differentiates it from the competition.

You can also switch up designs using the block layouts and pre-set design sections. There’s also an official Stackable theme that you can pair the plugin with, though Stackable works with any WordPress theme.

Stackable Premium takes things even further with:

• 251+ pre-set section designs
• 127+ premium layouts
• Three-layer separators

The free plugin is available at WordPress.org. After that, Stackable Premium is available at $49/year for use on a single site or $149/year for use on unlimited sites.

5. Kadence Blocks

Kadence Blocks is a freemium WordPress block plugin that focuses on offering really flexible core blocks, rather than offering a huge selection of new content blocks.

You only get 12+ new blocks, but most of those are core blocks that you’ll use in almost every design.

The most flexible block is probably the Row Layout block. It lets you set up highly flexible multi-column designs, inside which you can nest other blocks. One powerful thing about this block is the responsive controls. You can control the layout of your columns on desktop, tablet, and mobile:

It also includes a pre-built content library that lets you quickly import designs.

You also get Advanced Heading and Advanced Button blocks that give you more control over those core elements. Other blocks include:

• Form
• Tabs
• Accordion
• Testimonials

Because it’s focused on giving you really flexible core blocks, I think Kadence Blocks is a great “default” option. You can then use more flexible content blocks from other plugins with the basic building blocks from Kadence Blocks.

The 12+ Kadence Blocks mentioned above are 100% free. The plugin also has a Pro version for $59 that gives you access to premium Kadence Blocks such as Product Carousel, Video Popup, Split Content, and others.

6. ZeGuten

ZeGuten is an affordable collection of content blocks and layout options for the WordPress block editor.

Currently, it offers 19 different blocks, with more on the way. Some of the most notable blocks are:

• Post list
• Section
• Image comparison
• Advanced map
• Pricing table
• Carousel
• Team members
• Testimonials

Some of the blocks that are currently in development include sticky columns, a slider block, inline SVG, and more.

For the post block, you can choose from five different layouts, which gives you a lot of flexibility:

• List with thumbnail
• Grid
• Chess
• Masonry
• Carousel

Check out examples of the post layouts here.

You can also easily create four types of backgrounds with the section block:

• Image overlay
• Video
• Custom shape
• Gradient

ZeGuten costs $37 at CodeCanyon.

7. Ultimate Blocks

Ultimate Blocks is a free collection of 18+ new Gutenberg blocks, including some unique ones that other plugins on this list don’t offer.

One unique block is the schema-enabled Review block, which lets you add a review box that includes structured data to help you get rich snippets in Google Search. The box allows you to rate something on multiple criteria and then include one overall rating.

You also get a separate Star Rating block that you can use by itself.

Another unique block is the Content Filter block, which lets visitors filter out specific content by clicking on a filter at the top (no page reload required).

Beyond those, some of the other blocks that you get access to are:

• Table of contents
• Improved button block
• Testimonial
• Social share buttons
• Countdown timer

Ultimate Blocks also includes its own block manager plugin that lets you enable/disable blocks from the plugin, which helps you keep things lightweight.

Ultimate Blocks is 100% free.

8. Qubely

Qubely is a Gutenberg block plugin that comes in both a free core version and a premium version with more features. It comes from Themeum, the same team behind the Tutor LMS WordPress learning management system plugin that we reviewed not too long ago.

Qubely comes with a huge array of new blocks, as well as a collection of 150+ pre-built sections and templates that you can import and edit as needed.

The free version offers 27+ content and layout blocks, including:

• Video popup
• Testimonials
• Post grid to display your most recent blog posts
• Pricing tables
• Button groups
• Team members

Then, the premium version adds another 12+ new content blocks including:

• Form builder
• Advanced post grid with more options
• Image, team, and testimonial carousels
• Countdown timers

The premium version also adds:

• 160+ section templates – you can import and edit these as needed.
• 27+ starter packs – these are collections of full-page templates for all the important pages for various niches such as “dietician”, “photographer”, “digital agency”, and others.

The free core version is available at WordPress.org. After that, the pro version starts at $39 for use on a single site and costs $99 for use on unlimited sites.

9. CoBlocks

CoBlocks is a popular collection of Gutenberg blocks that was acquired by GoDaddy in April 2019.

It aims to add more of a page building experience to the block editor.

I always loved the designs from the original creator, Rich Tabor (who I believe is still involved), so this is one of my favorite block plugins.

CoBlocks adds 31+ new layout and content blocks to the Gutenberg editor.

To help you control the layout of your designs, CoBlocks adds a more flexible Row and Column block. You also get Shape Divider and Dynamic Separator blocks to split things up.

It also adds a new Typography Control Panel that works with both CoBlocks and the default WordPress blocks. This lets you control the typography settings for individual blocks.

Beyond those additions, you get plenty of content blocks, including:

• Author Profile
• Food & Drinks
• Form
• Hero
• Logos & Badges
• Post Carousel
• Pricing Table
• Services

It also has a companion theme called Go that has a Gutenberg-first design, but you can use CoBlocks with any other themes as well.

CoBlocks is 100% free. You do not need to be a GoDaddy customer to use it.

10. Getwid

Getwid is a free collection of 40+ WordPress blocks from MotoPress, the same team behind the MotoPress Content Editor page builder plugin.

In addition to the large collection of blocks, Getwid also offers 35+ importable templates built with those blocks.

Some of the most notable blocks include:

• Section
• Image Hotspot – this is a unique block that lets you add one or more hotspots to an image that displays a tooltip on hover. I don’t think any other plugin offers this for free. You can see a demo here.
• Banner – clickable sections that link to another page.
• Content Timeline
• Sliders
• Mailchimp Opt-in
• Contact Form
• Multiple options to display recent posts.

Getwid is 100% free and available at WordPress.org.

Which Is the Best Gutenberg Block Plugin?

Because you can use multiple Gutenberg block plugins at the same time, there’s really no reason to pick a single “best” option.

Obviously, a big part of your choice should come down to the specific content elements that you need.

I will say that Kadence Blocks has the most flexible layout block of any plugin that I’ve used, so I think that’s a good choice for everyone. It doesn’t include a lot of content blocks, but the Row Layout block by itself is reason enough to install the plugin, especially for the responsive controls.

From there, you can add on any of the other plugins to get access to a broader selection of content blocks. If you’re not sure where to get started, Ultimate Addons for Gutenberg and Stackable both have large collections of well-designed blocks, though all of the options on this list have something useful to offer.

Any questions about these WordPress block plugins? Ask away in the comments section!

Colin Newcomer

Colin Newcomer is a freelance writer for hire with a background in SEO and affiliate marketing. He helps clients grow their web visibility by writing primarily about digital marketing and WordPress. You can hire him to write for your website.