=== Photo Gallery, Sliders, Proofing and Themes - NextGEN Gallery ===
Contributors: photocrati, imagely
Tags: gallery, wordpress gallery plugin, photo gallery, image gallery, slideshow
Requires at least: 5.5.4
Stable tag: 4.0.4
Tested up to: 6.9
License: GPLv3
Requires PHP: 7.4

The most popular gallery plugin that lets you create galleries and albums in seconds.

== Description ==

= WordPress Gallery Plugin =

NextGEN Gallery has been the industry's standard **WordPress gallery plugin** since 2007 and continues to receive over 1.5 million new downloads per year. It's easy to use for simple photo galleries, but powerful enough for the most demanding photographers, visual artists, and imaging professionals who need a comprehensive photo gallery solution.

NextGEN Gallery offers complete WordPress gallery management with the ability to batch upload photos, import metadata, easily add, delete, rearrange photos and create an unlimited number of galleries. You can even simply provide a zip file or choose a folder to upload photos.

But our photo gallery plugin doesn't stop there!

> <strong>NextGEN Pro</strong><br/>
> This plugin is the lite version of the NextGEN Gallery plugin, which offers all the gallery features you'll need like photo albums, lightboxes, backups, search, sharing, filtering, print fulfillment, eCommerce, animations,  and tons more. [Click here to purchase the best photo gallery plugin for WordPress now!](https://www.imagely.com?utm_source=wprepo&utm_medium=link&utm_campaign=liteversion)

The free version of NextGEN gallery provides three main gallery styles (slideshow, thumbnail, and imagebrowser galleries) and two album styles (compact and extended), all of which come with a wide array of options for controlling size, style, timing, transitions, controls, lightbox effects, and more. Learn more about <a href="https://www.imagely.com/?utm_source=wprepo&utm_medium=link&utm_campaign=liteversion" target="_blank">NextGEN WordPress Gallery Plugin features.</a>

The best gets better with full support for the Gutenberg block editor. Now you can add a photo gallery or album anywhere on your site, with a page builder type feel directly in the WordPress editor. We truly make creating, building, and editing galleries easy.

= Feature List =
We've built NextGEN Gallery to be extremely powerful and full of features.

* **Albums** Organize multiple photo galleries into albums for easy sorting and viewing
* **Tags** Group multiple images together with tags, with easy-to-update renaming and management
* **eCommerce** Sell images from your photo gallery, or sell entire galleries with our built in payment processing. Works with Stripe and PayPal.
* **Slideshows** Make your galleries automatically rotate through a series of images
* **Themes** Access 84+ different types of themes to showcase your galleries
* **Animations** Create visual interest with 25+ different types of animations for each gallery
* **Watermarks** Protect your work with image and text-based watermarks.
* **Capabilities** Customize who can read, edit, and publish galleries with refined permsisions controls
* **Image Proofing** Let your customers choose which photos to purchase and improve your workflow.
* **Print Fulfillment** Sell your photos and ship prints directly to customers with automated print lab fulfillment and zero commissions
* **Auto Tax calculations** Automatically calculate sales tax when required for your customers.
* **Coupons** Offer discounts and incentives to increase your gallery sales
* **Lightroom Integration** Automatically sync and create photo galleries from Adobe Lightroom into NextGEN Gallery without any need to update your website.
* **Social Sharing** Create viral social media opportunities when your images are optimized for Open Graph and X
* **Image Commenting** * Add deep engagement to your images within the lightbox to increase gallery engagement
* **Deep Linking** Link directly to a specific image from one of your galleries
* **Frontend Search** * Add powerful filtering for your gallery based on tags
* **Hover Captions** * Add social sharing, tiles, and descriptions for each image
* **Digital Downloads** Offer digital downloads of your images for free, or chage for them with our eCommerce gallery plugin
* **Right Click Disable** prevent images in your galleries from being downloaded with easy right click and drag/drop protection.
* **Customization** * We've built in lots of individual customizations for each of our features so that you can make NextGEN Gallery perfect for you

As you can see, we've built a photo gallery plugin that is suitable for everyone! Want a specific or missing feature? Just let us know.


**NEXTGEN GALLERY DEMOS**<br>
*<a href="https://www.imagely.com/wordpress-gallery-plugin/basic-thumbnail-gallery/" target="_blank">Basic Thumbnail Gallery</a><br>
*<a href="https://www.imagely.com/wordpress-gallery-plugin/basic-slideshow-gallery/" target="_blank">Basic Slideshow Gallery</a><br>
*<a href="https://www.imagely.com/wordpress-gallery-plugin/basic-imagebrowser-gallery/" target="_blank">Basic Imagebrowser Gallery</a><br>
*<a href="https://www.imagely.com/wordpress-gallery-plugin/basic-compact-album/" target="_blank">Basic Compact Album</a><br>
*<a href="https://www.imagely.com/wordpress-gallery-plugin/basic-extended-album/" target="_blank">Basic List Album</a><br>

**NEXTGEN PRO DEMOS**<br>
*<a href="https://www.imagely.com/wordpress-gallery-plugin/pro-ecommerce-demo/" target="_blank">Photo Print Sales</a><br>
*<a href="https://www.imagely.com/wordpress-gallery-plugin/pro-proofing-demo/" target="_blank">Photo Proofing</a><br>
*<a href="https://www.imagely.com/wordpress-gallery-plugin/digital-download-demo/" target="_blank">Digital Downloads</a><br>
*<a href="https://www.imagely.com/wordpress-gallery-plugin/pro-mosaic-gallery/" target="_blank">Pro Mosaic Gallery</a><br>
*<a href="https://www.imagely.com/wordpress-gallery-plugin/pro-masonry-gallery/" target="_blank">Pro Masonry Gallery</a><br>
*<a href="https://www.imagely.com/wordpress-gallery-plugin/pro-tiled-gallery/" target="_blank">Pro Tile Gallery</a><br>
*<a href="https://www.imagely.com/wordpress-gallery-plugin/pro-filmstrip-gallery/" target="_blank">Pro Filmstrip Gallery</a><br>
*<a href="https://www.imagely.com/wordpress-gallery-plugin/pro-lightbox-demo/" target="_blank">Pro Lightbox</a><br>

= About Imagely =

NextGEN Gallery is a WordPress gallery plugin maintained by Imagely. We're the WordPress photography experts. In addition to NextGEN Gallery, NextGEN Plus, and NextGEN Pro, we also make WordPress themes for photographers, providing beautiful turnkey websites for photographers.


Learn more or connect with us:<br>
*<a href="https://www.imagely.com?utm_source=wprepo&utm_medium=link&utm_campaign=liteversion" target="_blank">Imagely Website</a><br>
*<a href="https://www.imagely.com/wordpress-photography-themes?utm_source=wprepo&utm_medium=link&utm_campaign=liteversion" target="_blank">WordPress Themes for Photographers</a><br>
*<a href="https://www.imagely.com/sites?utm_source=wprepo&utm_medium=link&utm_campaign=liteversion" target="_blank">Turnkey Photography Sites</a><br>
*<a href="https://www.imagely.com/docs/nextgen-gallery?utm_source=wprepo&utm_medium=link&utm_campaign=liteversion" target="_blank">NextGEN Gallery Documentation</a><br>

== Credits ==

Copyright: Imagely 2016-2024

== Installation ==

INSTALLATION: The easiest way to start uploading your photos is to login to you WordPress dashboard, go to Plugins > Add New, search for NextGEN Gallery, and click to install the plugin. You can also download the plugin zip file from this page and upload it from the Plugins > Add New > Upload page.

HOW TO USE: Just go to a page or post and add a NextGEN Gallery block. Within the block, click the Add Gallery button to open our Insert Gallery Window, where you can create, manage, customize, and display your WordPress photo galleries. You can also manage your photo galleries and gallery settings from the central options area under the "Gallery" tab on your dashboard menu.

DOCUMENTATION: See <a href="https://www.imagely.com/docs/nextgen-gallery/" target="_blank">NextGEN Gallery Documentation</a>.

That's it ... have fun! For more information, feel free to visit the official website for the NextGEN Gallery <a href="https://www.imagely.com/wordpress-gallery-plugin" target="_blank">WordPress Gallery Plugin</a>.

== Screenshots ==

1. Thumbnail Gallery
2. Slideshow Gallery
3. Imagebrowser Gallery
4. Manage Gallery Page
5. Insert Gallery Window
6. Gallery Settings Page

== Shortcodes ==

NextGEN Gallery offers an easy-to-use Insert Gallery Window, which means you never need to work with shortcodes again when inserting and manageing galleries - if you would prefer not too.

If you do want to work with shortcodes, there is a powerful shortcode system as you'd expect of a popular WordPress gallery plugin. <a href="https://www.imagely.com/docs/nextgen-gallery-shortcodes/">Learn About NextGEN Gallery Shortcodes</a>.

For more information, feel free to visit the official website for the NextGEN Gallery <a href="https://www.imagely.com/wordpress-gallery-plugin/" target="_blank">WordPress Gallery Plugin</a>.

== Frequently Asked Questions ==


= Why are my photo galleries not opening up in a lightbox after I move my site? =

This is often due to the URL paths to the CSS and JavaScript files used by the Lightbox Effects not being changed to relevant addresses based on the new site. This article will help sort out this issue if that is the case: <a href="https://www.imagely.com/docs/galleries-opening-lightbox/" target="_blank">Why are my galleries not opening up in a lightbox?</a>.


= Do you have documentation or tutorials? =

Yes. See <a href="https://www.imagely.com/docs/" target="_blank">NextGEN Gallery Documentation</a>.

= Will this gallery plugin work with my theme? =

Yup, NextGEN is a popular and well-established WordPress gallery plugin, and has been for a long time. It will work well with most other themes and plugins in the WordPress ecosystem.


= Are the photo galleries flash based? =

Nope, we do not use flash elements.


= Are the galleries mobile friendly? =

Yes, we've put a lot of work into this and, NextGEN Galleries are compatible with phones and tablets, inluding Android and iOS operating systems. All photo galleries are also responsive, so galleries look good on diverse screen sizes. NextGEN Pro also includes a fullscreen, responsive Pro Lightbox with mobile gesture support. It's great for viewing photos on mobile devices.


= What is the difference between a gallery and an album? =

In simple terms, Albums are collections of galleries. So Galleries contain your photos and Albums contain your Galleries. Albums act as links and placeholders to quickly and easily navigate your galleries. Galleries will actually display your images.


= Can I upload multiple images at once? =

Yes, you can batch upload entire photo galleries at one time or even include zip folders.


= Can I password protect galleries? =

Yes, WordPress allows you to password protect pages by default - which includes all photo galleries and content for the entire page. Password protection pages can be turned on and off at any time, with just a few clicks.


= Can I add a watermark to the my photos? =

Yes, you can add text or image watermarks to your gallery images.


= Can I crop photo thumbnails? =

Yes, each thumbnail image can be individually adjusted to suit your needs.


= Is there pagination for photo galleries? =

Yes, you can use pagination when displaying thumbnail galleries. You can adjust the amount of photos to be shown on a page at any time.


= Can I customize the lightbox? =

Yes, the lightbox can be configured with multiple options directly from the Dashboard, and there are multiple CSS styles, which can be applied and modified as well. If you want even more options, consider upgrading to NextGEN Pro and using the NextGEN Pro lightbox.


= Can I add HTML to photo captions? =

Yes, caption areas are fully HMTL capable.


= Can I add an external links to galleries? =

Since the captions are fully HTML capable, you can add external links and any other type of markup you wish.


= Is NextGEN Gallery available in foreign languages? =

Yes, our WordPress gallery plugin has been translated into dozens of languages - <a href="https://www.imagely.com/languages/" target="_blank">click here to find out more.</a>


= More Information =

For more information, feel free to visit the official website for the NextGEN Gallery <a href="https://www.imagely.com/wordpress-gallery-plugin" target="_blank">WordPress Gallery Plugin</a>.


== Changelog ==

= v4.0.3 - 12.18.2025 =
• Added: REST endpoint to scan a gallery folder and import newly added images, and a client hook to trigger it.
• Added: legacy template selector and exposed available legacy templates to the admin app.
• Added: shared Pagination component and applied it across admin list screens (galleries, albums, tags, orders).
• Added: Image ID field to the image metadata modal.
• Added: Digital Downloads section in order details with a direct download link.
• Fixed: 403 rate-limiting issues by debouncing display/settings saves (longer debounce) in gallery/album customize flows.
• Fixed: legacy template loading security by blocking traversal attempts and only allowing templates from approved directories
• Fixed: Upgrade menu item and related admin styles/targeting to show only for Lite installs.
• Fixed: duplicate-column errors when adding DB columns by checking column existence directly
• Fixed: order resubmission-to-lab flow (improved success/error handling) and improved order item file details display.
• Fixed: missing UTM parameters in upgrade links.

= V4.0.2 - 12.15.2025 =
* Fixed: Missing thumbnails on the gallery edit page for some users
* Fixed: Creating galleries from server subfolders
* Fixed: User and capabilities page showing for all users

= V4.0.1 - 12.10.2025 =
* Fixed: Edit gallery user permissions

= V4.0.0 - 12.09.2025 =
* Improved: Admin area user interface

= V3.59.12 - 04.23.2025 =
* Fixed: Lightbox allowed html discrepancy

= V3.59.11 - 04.17.2025 =
* Fixed: SQL formatting error on plugin activation
* Fixed: Translation warning in some admin pages

= V3.59.10 - 01.28.2025 =
* Fixed: Frontend search not working in some cases

= V3.59.9 - 01.16.2025 =
* Fixed: Title and caption allowed html tags.

= V3.59.8 - 01.06.2025 =
* Fixed: Apostrophes not being added to image title
* Improved: Fields sanitization

= V3.59.7 - 12.05.2024 =
* Fixed: Links and styles on about page
* Fixed: Readme update

= V3.59.6 - 11.05.2024 =
* Fixed: Title and captions escaping
* Added: Onboarding wizard
* Added: Optional usage tracking
* Fixed: Blurry images on cropping

= V3.59.5 - 09.24.2024 =
* Fixed: Improved security

= V3.59.4 - 07.18.2024 =
* Fixed: Warning on WP import file
* Added: Create gallery nudge
* Added: Notifications count to the navbar menu
* Fixed: Duplicated gallery name  in the Gutenberg block
* Fixed: Gutenberg block not working when adding into the page template
* Added: Link on the header section logo and make it clickable
* Fixed: Duplicate thumbnail in basic thumbnails carousel

= V3.59.3 - 05.29.2024 =
* Fixed: Improved transient registration.
* Fixed: Rendering shortcodes on rest endpoints.
* Fixed: Album name sanitization.
* Removed: Deprecated admin notices.
* Fixed: PHP 8.2 warnings

= V3.59.2 - 04.10.2024 =
* Fixed: Various bugs and improved UI/UX in various places.

= V3.59.1 - 04.03.2024 =
* Fixed: Warning when saving settings.
* Fixed: Show ordered filenames on order details page.

= V3.59  - 03.14.2024 =
* Fixed: URI too long prevents "Sort or exclude images" from loading images.
* Fixed: Correcting Lightroom clients being unable to sync image .
* Fixed: Prevent PHP warning / error when watermarking.
* Fixed: Sorting images from a Classic Editor launched IGW.
* Fixed: Shutter lightbox randomly failing to load the captions.
* Fixed: PHP notices and warnings.
* Fixed: Addressed a bug reported by Dmitrii Ignatyev of Cleantalk.

= V3.58  - 02.08.2024 =
* Fixed:   A potential fatal DivisionByZeroError caused by image files being deleted outside of NextGEN.
* Fixed:   A potential fatal error in the XML-RPC controller.
* Fixed:   An issue with classic (non-block) themes could break Pro's "Open album children in the Pro Lightbox" feature.
* Fixed:   Assorted potential PHP notices and warnings.
* Fixed:   Manage Galleries' "Images per Page" feature was not working.
* Fixed:   Passing 'gallery_width="auto"' to a Slideshow shortcode could result in a fatal error.

= V3.57  - 01.10.2024 =
* Fixed:   Albums were generating an incorrect URL to their child galleries.
* Fixed:   Albums could generate a fatal error when viewing a sub-album.
* Fixed:   Do not call opcache_reset() if it does not exist.

= V3.56  - 01.09.2024 =
* Fixed:   "Open album children in Pro Lightbox" feature was only working with block based themes.
* Fixed:   Adding more than one Pro display to one page caused galleries after the first to be unstyled.
* Fixed:   Albums with very a large number of children may have broken gallery displays if it relies on the dynamic-css feature.
* Fixed:   Continued fixing recently introduced incompatibilies with 3rd party extensions.
* Fixed:   Creating a new gallery from the Manage Galleries page was just reloading the page.
* Fixed:   Display Type settings could be forced back to their default settings when upgrading.
* Fixed:   IIS servers may generate a fatal error searching for an absolute path to template files.
* Fixed:   Inserting NextGEN singlepic from the Add Media popup was creating an <img> without a src attribute.
* Fixed:   Possible PHP notices, warnings.
* Fixed:   Restored the NGG_DISABLE_SHORTCODE_MANAGER constant.
* Fixed:   Router->fix_page_parameter() generated a warning if the global $post is not an object.
* Fixed:   The button 'Scan folder for new images' was re-importing existing images.
* Fixed:   Updating tags via the Manage Tags page did not flush the displayed gallery rendering cache.
