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Plan a move Radar no. 87 · Falling behind

Custom Post Template

By Simon Wheatley

What it does: Lets editors choose a template for each post.

Why it’s listed: WordPress has supported templates for posts since version 4.7. This plugin has not changed since 2012 and is tested only up to WordPress 3.4.

View on WordPress.org ↗ Checked Reviewed by Abhishek Deshpande

Active installs
10k+
Last updated
2017-11-28
Tested up to
3.4.2
Rating
4.8 / 5 (43)
Version
1.5
Maintainers
1

Is Custom Post Template still maintained?

It has gone over two years without an update.

Falling behind: WordPress or a service it relies on has moved on.

Placements are our opinion, based on public evidence. Risk here means a plugin may not get a fix if a problem appears. It doesn’t mean we found a flaw, unless we show an advisory. Going quiet alone never puts a plugin in Replace now.

Updates WordPress.org shows 2017-11-28, but the plugin’s readme last changed on 2012-06-14. WordPress.org plugin directory · checked 2026-10-31
Compatibility Tested up to WordPress 3.4.2. WordPress 7.1.4 was current on 2026-10-31. WordPress.org plugin directory · checked 2026-10-31
Security No public advisories found. A quiet record is not proof of safety. wpvulnerability.net · checked 2026-10-31
Reviews The latest 10 reviews average 5.0 stars, against 4.8 overall. None of them gave 1 or 2 stars. Newest activity: 2018-02-15. We see no negative trend. WordPress.org reviews · checked 2026-10-31
Maintainers 1 listed contributor. No recent support threads. WordPress.org plugin directory · checked 2026-10-31
Usage 601 downloads in the last 30 days, including updates. 98.32% of sites run version 1.5. WordPress.org stats · checked 2026-10-31

What to do next

  1. Back up the site, and use a staging copy for any change.
  2. Move your templates to one of the alternatives below, check each post, then remove this plugin.

If it works today, no need to panic. Plan the change around your next update.

Recommended alternatives to Custom Post Template

Post type templates ↗

Built in since WordPress 4.7.

No extra plugin needed

Site Editor templates ↗

Build templates in a block theme.

No extra plugin needed

Child theme ↗

Keep custom templates in your own theme files.

No extra plugin needed

Each listed plugin was updated in the last six months, is tested with WordPress 7.0 or newer, and had no open advisory in WPVulnerability when we checked. We have not tried them ourselves. No one pays to appear here.

Latest reviews

Dates show last activity. Titles are written by WordPress.org users.

Also on this radar: Titles and templates

No one can pay to appear on the radar or to change a placement. How we stay independent

Something wrong, or updated since we checked? Suggest a correction

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