Better Messages — WordPress LMS Plugin
Better Messages – Chat Rooms, Group Chat, Private Messages & AI Chat Bots
by wordplus · WordPress.org page · Website
Better Messages has 10,000+ active installs on WordPress.org and 1,915,355 downloads all time. It was downloaded 55,279 times in the last 30 days. The last update was on October 20, 2026, tested up to WordPress 7.1.3.
Better Messages at a glance
Is Better Messages well maintained?
Features
The feature list from the plugin's own readme on WordPress.org, trimmed to the essentials.
- AJAX or WebSocket powered realtime conversations
- Private one-to-one conversations
- Group conversations with unlimited participants
- Chat Rooms with guest access support
- Messages for BuddyPress Groups, PeepSo Groups, Ultimate Member Groups, FluentCommunity Groups
- Subjects for conversations
- Search across all messages
- Mark messages as favorite
- Pin important messages to conversation top
- Pin favorite conversations to list top
- Filter conversations list to show only unread conversations
- Reply to specific messages
Better Messages reviews and ratings
142 reviews on WordPress.org, with the most recent ones as their authors posted them.
142 reviews
- 5★
-
133
- 4★
-
2
- 3★
-
0
- 2★
-
1
- 1★
-
6
-
Wonderful plugin
Wonderful and accessible plugin with rich features, highly extensible with powerful hooks and great support.
Butterfly88 -
Great tool - even better support
I am using the tool as a chatroom and messenger plugin on my site and it works very well. A lot of modifcations are possible and it can be easly adapted to the website. What really stands out is the support. You get very quick responses and help whenever you need it. That is truly not something you can take for granted.
domiwittmann -
Better Messages
Better Messages is an outstanding plugin. It works flawlessly, is fast, stable, and integrates perfectly with Ultimate Member. Even more important: whenever you have a question, the support team responds quickly, kindly, and with exceptionally clear explanations. Their help is truly excellent. I highly recommend this plugin — it delivers great functionality and top‑level support.fwtrader - the Netherlands
fwtrader -
PHENOMENAL
Plugins that are this well developed and supported are few and far between. The developer went above and beyond to help me with a strange (to me) site migration issue that I'm not even sure is within the scope of support. And the features are staggeringly extensive. This is THE messaging plugin for Wordpress.
jamtpg23 -
Get It Now!
If you are looking for a Messaging plugin for your site, look no further. Better Messages is all you need! Works perfectly and backed up by outstanding support!
Dianne -
Excellent Plugin and Support
Looks great, functions better than expected, and excellent support. If only all Wordpress plugins were this well made and maintained.
codings
Download and install history
74,303 downloads over the last 48 days. Snapshots taken daily from WordPress.org.
Where Better Messages ranks on WordPress.org
The rankings we track that Better Messages appears in, and how its position changed over 30 days.
| Ranking | WordPress.org placement | Position | 30 days |
|---|---|---|---|
| Best LMS Plugins | #19 in search, not tagged | #41 | ▲7 |
| Best Live Chat Plugins | #20 in search, not tagged | #53 | ▲5 |
| Best Real Estate Plugins | #53 in search, not tagged | #86 | ▲8 |
| Best White Label Plugins | #57 in search, not tagged | #98 | – |
Better Messages alternatives
Plugins that solve the same problem, ranked by how closely they overlap with Better Messages.
-
WPBot 5,000+ installs · 4.7 -
CleanTalk Anti-Spam 200,000+ installs · 4.8 -
WP Maps 60,000+ installs · 4.3 -
GeoDirectory 10,000+ installs · 4.8 -
Folders 90,000+ installs · 5.0
Details
Real-time messaging and chat rooms for WordPress ecosystem: private conversations, public and private chat rooms, video & audio calls, and more.
The full description, screenshots and every review live on the WordPress.org page.
Tags
- buddypress
- chat room
- group chat
- private message
- video chat
- Version
- 3.1.4
- Last updated
- Oct 20, 2026
- First published
- Jan 3, 2017
- Requires WordPress
- 5.9.0
- Tested up to
- 7.1.3
- Requires PHP
- 7.4
- Pricing
- Free on WordPress.org
Better Messages FAQ
What does Better Messages do?
According to its WordPress.org readme, Better Messages offers AJAX or WebSocket powered realtime conversations, Private one-to-one conversations, Group conversations with unlimited participants, Chat Rooms with guest access support and Messages for BuddyPress Groups, PeepSo Groups, Ultimate Member Groups, FluentCommunity Groups.
How many active installs does Better Messages have?
WordPress.org reports 10,000+ active installs for Better Messages as of October 22, 2026.
Is Better Messages still maintained?
Yes. The last release was on October 20, 2026 and it is tested up to WordPress 7.1.3.
Does Better Messages have good support?
On the WordPress.org forum, 8 of 8 recent support threads for Better Messages are marked resolved. That is the developer's free support; a paid version usually comes with its own channel.
Is Better Messages free?
Better Messages is free to install from WordPress.org. Many plugins also sell a paid version or add-ons.
Where does Better Messages rank among LMS Plugins?
Better Messages is #41 in the WordPress.org LMS Plugins ranking.