Meta Box
Meta Box is a privately held WordPress framework company that provides a custom-fields and meta-box plugin plus 25+ premium extensions, monetized via annual bundles and Lifetime plans, serving a global base of WordPress developers and small-to-mid-sized agencies.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2010
- HeadquartersRedwood City, United States
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingSoftware
What Meta Box does
Meta Box is a privately held WordPress framework company founded in 2010 and operated by a team of 1-10 people out of Redwood City, USA, in association with the elightup parent brand. The company provides a WordPress plugin and modular platform that extends the native WordPress data model — building on custom fields and WordPress APIs — to enable custom meta boxes, custom post types, taxonomies, settings pages, front-end forms, user profiles, custom database tables, and many-to-many relationships between posts, terms, and users. The product portfolio consists of a free open-source core (Meta Box Lite, on WordPress.org), a paid all-in-one plugin (Meta Box AIO), and 25+ premium extensions grouped into field organization, data management, form building, SEO, page-builder integration, and migration tools.
The business model is freemium with a direct-to-customer sales motion: the core is free, while monetization comes from annual subscription bundles ($49 Basic, $99 Ultimate) and Lifetime packages ($299 personal, $699 agency) for individual site owners, plus higher-priced Agency Unlimited-site tiers ($149-$229/year) and individual premium extensions. The go-to-market combines a product-led motion through the WordPress.org repository and free online generators (Post Type, Taxonomy, Block, Demo) with a community-led motion through documentation, tutorials, support forum, and an open GitHub repository, supported by deep native integrations with the major page builders (Elementor, Divi, Bricks, Oxygen, Beaver Builder), SEO plugins (Yoast, Rank Math), search/filtering tools (FacetWP, SearchWP), and WPML. The company has no disclosed external funding, no disclosed revenue, and serves a globally distributed base of primarily individual WordPress developers and small-to-mid-sized web development agencies, evidenced by 600,000+ active installs, a 4.9/5 WordPress.org rating, 17 supported languages, and ongoing 2024-2025 extension release activity.
Meta Box firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Meta Box
- Legal name
- Meta Box
- Website
- https://metabox.io
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2010
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- Meta Box is a privately held WordPress framework company that provides a custom-fields and meta-box plugin plus 25+ premium extensions, monetized via annual bundles and Lifetime plans, serving a global base of WordPress developers and small-to-mid-sized agencies.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Where Meta Box is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Redwood City
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Markets served
Meta Box business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Premium Extensions and Bundles: Meta Box generates revenue through premium extensions and bundled packages. The Basic Bundle ($49/year) includes 12 PRO extensions for 1 site. The Ultimate Bundle ($99/year) includes all PRO extensions and future extensions for 3 sites. The Lifetime Bundle ($299 one-time) provides lifetime access to all solutions.
- Agency Plans: Volume licensing for agencies with unlimited site usage. Agency Basic at $149/year, Agency Ultimate at $229/year, and Agency Lifetime at $699 one-time. These exclude enterprises, hosting providers, and similar businesses.
- Individual Premium Extensions: Individual premium extensions available for purchase separately (e.g., MB Include Exclude at $39 with unlimited sites, 1 year of updates and support).
- Freemium (Meta Box Lite): Core Meta Box framework and Meta Box Lite are free, providing the core library and all free extensions including MB Builder. This drives adoption and serves as a funnel to premium upsells.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Subscription | Annual | Basic Bundle - Essential plugins for 1 site |
| Subscription | Annual | Ultimate Bundle - Everything for 3 sites |
| One time/ perpetual license | Multi-year contract | Lifetime Bundle - Professional users one-time purchase |
| Subscription | Annual | Agency Basic - Unlimited sites for agencies |
| Subscription | Annual | Agency Ultimate - Full agency solution |
| One time/ perpetual license | Multi-year contract | Agency Lifetime - One-time agency license |
| Subscription | Annual | Individual Extension - MB Include Exclude |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels7 records
Meta Box product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Meta Box is a WordPress framework and plugin ecosystem that lets developers and website builders create, manage, and display custom fields, custom post types, taxonomies, settings pages, relationships, user profiles, front-end forms, and custom tables. It is sold as a free core/Lite plugin and monetized through 25+ premium extensions and bundled subscription plans (Personal and Agency tiers).
Product overview
Meta Box is a WordPress custom fields framework with a modular platform-plus-extensions architecture. The core Meta Box framework provides the foundation for creating custom meta boxes, post types, taxonomies, and dynamic data management. The product portfolio includes Meta Box Lite (free version with all free extensions and MB Builder included), Meta Box AIO (premium All-in-One plugin with all 25+ extensions), and individual premium extensions available for purchase. Extensions fall into categories: field organization (MB Group, MB Tabs, MB Columns, MB Show Hide, MB Include Exclude), data management (MB Custom Table, MB REST API, MB Revision), form building (MB Frontend Submission, MB User Profile, MB User Meta), content relationships (MB Relationships, MB Term Meta), integrations (Elementor, Divi, Beaver Builder, Yoast SEO, Rank Math, FacetWP, SearchWP, WP All Import, Admin Columns), migrations (ACF, Pods, Toolset), UI enhancements (MB Tooltip, MB Text Limiter, MB Comment Meta), and solutions (MB Testimonials). Pricing includes Personal and Agency tiers with Basic, Ultimate, and Lifetime bundles ranging from $49/year to $699 one-time.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Meta Box Lite: A feature-rich free version of Meta Box that combines the core plugin with all free extensions, providing a strong fundamental for creating custom post types, taxonomies, custom fields, and relationships.
- Meta Box AIO (All-In-One)
- MB Blocks
- MB Views
- MB Custom Table
- MB Frontend Submission
- MB User Profile
- MB Relationships
Products and services
- Meta Box (Core Framework) The core WordPress framework for creating custom meta boxes, custom post types, taxonomies, settings pages, forms, and managing dynamic data. Built on custom fields and WordPress APIs to make building and customizing websites with dynamic content easy. Targets WordPress developers and agencies.
- Meta Box Lite Free version of Meta Box that combines the core plugin with all free extensions and the MB Builder visual interface, providing a foundation for creating custom post types, taxonomies, custom fields, and relationships. Targets WordPress developers and website builders adopting the Meta Box ecosystem.
- Meta Box AIO (All-In-One) Premium all-in-one plugin containing all 25+ Meta Box extensions plus the core framework, with a settings page for enabling/disabling extensions and database management tools. Targets developers and agencies that want a single-install, full-featured Meta Box experience.
- MB Builder Drag-and-drop visual interface for creating custom meta boxes and custom fields without writing code. Now included free in Meta Box Lite, targeting non-developer website builders and developers who want faster field setup.
- MB Custom Post Types & Custom Taxonomies Extension that creates and manages custom post types and custom taxonomies in WordPress through an easy-to-use interface, including labels, icons, menu position, and sorting. Targets WordPress developers.
- MB Views Builds front-end templates for singular and archive pages in WordPress without touching theme files, using the Twig template engine and supporting all field types. Targets WordPress developers and agencies.
- MB Custom Table Saves custom-fields data to a dedicated database table instead of default WordPress meta tables, reducing database size and significantly increasing performance. Targets developers building data-heavy WordPress sites (e.g., WooCommerce).
- MB Blocks Creates custom Gutenberg blocks for WordPress using PHP, with no React, Webpack, or Babel required. Targets WordPress developers building custom block-based content.
- MB REST API Pulls all meta values from posts and terms into the WordPress REST API responses and enables getting or updating Meta Box data via REST API and triggering webhooks with automation plugins. Targets developers integrating WordPress with external systems.
- MB Frontend Submission Creates front-end editorial forms so users can submit blog posts (and similar content such as reviews or real estate listings) directly from the WordPress site front end. Targets developers building user-generated-content workflows.
- MB User Profile Creates register, login, and edit user-profile forms on the WordPress front end, embeddable everywhere via shortcodes. Targets developers building membership and user-account features.
- MB Relationships Lightweight WordPress plugin for creating many-to-many relationships between posts, terms, and users. Targets developers modeling complex relational content.
- MB Group Organizes custom fields into repeatable and robust groups with multi-level nesting, improving structure and appearance of meta-box UIs. Targets WordPress developers.
- MB Conditional Logic Controls the visibility of meta boxes, custom fields, and HTML elements based on the values of other fields, with advanced operators (contains, in, between, starts with, ends with, match). Targets developers building dynamic, context-aware forms.
- MB Show Hide Toggles meta boxes by page template, post format, or taxonomy via JavaScript, working in both the classic editor and the Gutenberg block editor. Targets developers needing conditional UI controls.
- MB Include Exclude Shows or hides meta boxes conditionally by post ID, page template, category, tag, custom taxonomy, user role, or custom function, combining conditions with AND/OR logical operators. Targets developers needing fine-grained UI control.
- MB Tabs Organizes custom fields into tabs with three tab styles using a WordPress-native UI, supporting icons from Dashicons, Font Awesome, or custom images. Targets developers organizing complex meta-box UIs.
- MB Columns Displays custom fields more attractively by arranging them in a 12-column grid. Targets developers building well-structured meta-box layouts.
- MB Settings Page Creates custom settings pages for WordPress themes, plugins, or websites with a simple syntax, supporting tabs and meta-box styles. Targets developers building plugin/theme options screens.
- MB Term Meta Adds custom fields to categories, tags, or any custom taxonomy in WordPress with a simple syntax. Targets developers extending taxonomy data.
- MB User Meta Adds custom fields to WordPress user profiles (user meta) with simple syntax. Targets developers extending user profile data.
- MB Geolocation Automatically and instantly populates location data using the Google Maps or Open Street Maps Geolocation API. Targets developers building location-aware WordPress features.
- MB Admin Columns Displays custom fields in table columns in WordPress admin screens for all post types, with search, edit, sort, and export features. Targets developers customizing WordPress admin UX.
- MB Text Limiter Limits the number of characters or words entered for text and textarea fields. Targets developers needing input validation.
- MB Tooltip Displays help information for fields using beautiful tooltips with custom icons, positions, and HTML content. Targets developers enhancing meta-box usability.
- MB Template Defines custom meta boxes and custom fields using human-readable YAML syntax, making configuration easier to read and maintain. Targets developers preferring config-as-code workflows.
- MB Revision Tracks changes of custom fields with WordPress revision, allowing users to save, compare, and restore changes easily. Targets developers needing content-versioning for custom fields.
- MB Comment Meta Adds custom fields to WordPress comments, supporting all field types and options. Targets developers extending comment data.
- MB ACF Migration Migrates field groups and custom-field data from Advanced Custom Fields (ACF) to Meta Box. Targets developers/agencies switching from ACF to the Meta Box ecosystem.
- MB Pods Migration Migrates custom post types, taxonomies, field groups, custom-field data, and relationships from Pods to Meta Box. Targets developers/agencies switching from Pods to Meta Box.
- MB Toolset Migration Migrates custom post types, taxonomies, field groups, custom-field data, and relationships from Toolset to Meta Box. Targets developers/agencies switching from Toolset to Meta Box.
- MB Yoast SEO Integration Adds the content of Meta Box custom fields to Yoast SEO Content Analysis for better SEO scoring. Targets developers building SEO-optimized WordPress sites.
- MB Rank Math Adds the content of Meta Box custom fields to Rank Math Content Analysis for better SEO scoring. Targets developers building SEO-optimized WordPress sites using Rank Math.
- MB Elementor Integration Connects and displays custom fields created by Meta Box in Elementor's dynamic tags. Targets developers/agencies building Elementor-based WordPress sites.
- MB Divi Integration Integrates Meta Box and the Divi theme/page builder, allowing users to select and show Meta Box custom fields in Divi layouts. Targets developers/agencies building Divi-based WordPress sites.
- MB Beaver Builder Integration Selects and shows custom fields created by Meta Box in Beaver Themer field connections. Targets developers/agencies building Beaver Builder-based WordPress sites.
- MB FacetWP Integration Integrates Meta Box with FacetWP, making custom fields searchable and filterable on the WordPress front end. Targets developers building advanced search and filtering UIs.
- MB SearchWP Integration Queries WordPress posts by Meta Box custom fields, including serialized data (groups) and content stored in custom tables. Targets developers building advanced search experiences.
- MB Admin Columns Integration Adds columns for Meta Box custom fields in post, user, or taxonomy tables with search, edit, sort, and export features. Targets developers customizing WordPress admin screens.
- MB WPAI Integration Integrates WP All Import with Meta Box, allowing users to map Meta Box fields and import data from CSV, Excel, and XML files, handling complex fields and settings. Targets developers/agencies performing large content imports.
- MB Testimonials WordPress plugin for adding testimonials with 7 pre-made templates, displayable in grid or slider styles; available only in the Lifetime Bundle. Targets website owners building social-proof sections.
Quantifiable outcome
- With ACF custom database tables took 15 minutes for WooCommerce CPT changes; Meta Box custom tables completed in less than 20 seconds
- +1 more outcomes
Companies that use Meta Box
Customer profileNamed customers5 records
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Meta Box technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- Yes
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration14 records
Feature9 records
Meta Box partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core.
- ElementorcoreDeep integration allowing Meta Box custom fields to be connected and displayed in Elementor's dynamic tags. Users can pull custom field data directly into Elementor-designed pages.
- DivicoreMB Divi Integration extension connects Meta Box and Divi theme/page builder to select and show Meta Box custom fields in Divi layouts.
- BrickscoreFull support for connecting dynamic data from Meta Box with Bricks page builder.
- OxygencoreFull support for connecting dynamic data from Meta Box with Oxygen page builder.
- Yoast SEOcoreMB Yoast SEO Integration adds custom field content to Yoast SEO Content Analysis for better/correct SEO scoring.
- Rank MathcoreMB Rank Math Integration adds custom field content to Rank Math Content Analysis for better SEO scores.
- WPMLcoreMeta Box is officially supported by WPML, the most popular multilingual plugin for WordPress. Translated into 17 languages.
- Gutenberg (WordPress Block Editor)coreMeta Box is completely compatible with Gutenberg, the new block editor in WordPress 5.0+. MB Blocks extension creates custom Gutenberg blocks.
Scale indicators6 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Meta Box competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- CMB2: CMB2 is a developer-focused WordPress meta box framework maintained by WebDevStudios, used to build custom meta boxes and custom fields via code. It targets the same developer persona as Meta Box, particularly those building WordPress sites with code-driven custom field definitions rather than visual builders.
- Secure Custom Fields (WP Engine): Secure Custom Fields is the WP Engine-maintained fork of ACF Pro offering free custom fields functionality inside the WordPress.org ecosystem. As a free, WP-Engine-backed alternative to ACF, it competes in the same horizontal slot Meta Box targets — developers picking a custom fields framework for new projects.
- Carbon Fields: Carbon Fields is a WordPress custom fields library offering containers, fields, and theme options with a PHP-first developer experience. It overlaps with Meta Box's developer-targeted, code-first approach to creating custom fields and meta boxes.
- Advanced Custom Fields (ACF): ACF is the most widely used WordPress custom fields framework and Meta Box's primary direct competitor. Both serve the same developer/agency use case (custom fields, meta boxes, CPTs) with comparable UI builders and extensions, and Meta Box customer testimonials explicitly benchmark against ACF on performance and extensibility.
- Pods Framework: Pods is an open-source WordPress framework for custom content types, taxonomies, and advanced custom fields. Meta Box provides a Pods migration extension, treating it as a direct competitor for users managing complex custom data structures in WordPress.
- JetEngine (Crocoblock): JetEngine by Crocoblock is a WordPress plugin suite for custom post types, meta boxes, custom fields, and dynamic content within the JetPlugins ecosystem. It targets the same developer/agency market as Meta Box with overlapping capabilities around dynamic templates, relations, and custom queries.
- Toolset (OnTheGoSystems): Toolset is a long-standing WordPress custom fields, custom post types, and views framework competing for the same agency and developer segment. Meta Box ships a dedicated Toolset migration extension, indicating direct overlap in target use cases such as custom post types, relationships, and front-end display.
Emerging players
- Ultimate Fields: Ultimate Fields is a WordPress custom fields and front-end forms toolkit offering field groups, front-end posting, and integrations with page builders. It targets a similar developer/builder audience to Meta Box but with a smaller footprint and lower market visibility.
- Custom Post Type UI: Custom Post Type UI is a free WordPress plugin focused specifically on creating and managing custom post types and taxonomies via UI. While narrower in scope than Meta Box (no custom fields framework), it competes for the same 'manage custom content in WordPress' use case among less developer-heavy users.
Others
- Elementor Pro (Dynamic Tags): Elementor is the leading WordPress page builder and ships native dynamic tags and custom field support. It is a partner/integrator of Meta Box (Meta Box supplies fields consumed by Elementor) but also a partial substitute for less technical users, making it an adjacent competitive force in the broader 'dynamic WordPress data' stack.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key highlights5 records
Customer concentration
Meta Box social profiles
Digital presenceMeta Box compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance1 record
Meta Box financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Meta Box leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Meta Box funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Meta Box M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Meta Box
What does Meta Box do?
Meta Box is a WordPress framework and plugin ecosystem that lets developers and website builders create, manage, and display custom fields, custom post types, taxonomies, settings pages, relationships, user profiles, front-end forms, and custom tables. It is sold as a free core/Lite plugin and monetized through 25+ premium extensions and bundled subscription plans (Personal and Agency tiers).
Is Meta Box a public or private company?
Meta Box is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Meta Box founded?
Meta Box was founded in 2010. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is Meta Box based?
Meta Box is headquartered in Redwood City, United States, in the North America region.
How does Meta Box make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. Premium Extensions and Bundles are the primary driver. The others are agency Plans, individual Premium Extensions and freemium (Meta Box Lite).
Who are Meta Box's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are CMB2, Secure Custom Fields (WP Engine), Carbon Fields, Advanced Custom Fields (ACF), Pods Framework, JetEngine (Crocoblock) and Toolset (OnTheGoSystems). Emerging players are Ultimate Fields and Custom Post Type UI. Elementor Pro (Dynamic Tags) is listed as an others.
Does Meta Box have an API?
Yes. Meta Box provides a REST API through the MB REST API extension that allows getting or updating data via REST API, and using any automation plugin to trigger webhooks. The API enables pulling all meta values from posts and terms into the WP REST API responses. This allows users to integrate Meta Box data with automation tools and external systems. Developer documentation is at docs.metabox.io.