Otter Blocks vs Essential Blocks
Essential Blocks has one of the largest free block libraries in the block editor. Where the two plugins part company is the form. Otter stores what people send you and connects to your mailing list on the free plugin. Essential Blocks emails you and then asks for a licence.
Free forever on WordPress.org. Otter Pro from $69 a year with a 30 day money back guarantee.
Free in Otter, paid in Essential Blocks
What is free in Otter, and what it costs in Essential Blocks
Essential Blocks gives away a lot of blocks. The paywall sits around the form and around who sees what, which is usually the reason a site needs a block plugin in the first place.
Essential Blocks is cheaper to start with, $49 against our $69 at list price, and it sells a lifetime licence that we do not. The gap opens up as you scale, because 100 sites costs $349 there against unlimited client sites at $149 here.
What you get without paying anything
Both lists below are the free download, with nothing bought.
Otter Blocks, free
Essential Blocks, free
Where each feature actually lives
Read this as a map of paywalls rather than a scoreboard. Rows where Essential Blocks is ahead are marked too.
Four reasons to choose Otter Blocks
Your form data stays yours, for free
Otter writes every valid submission to your WordPress database and lists it under Otter Blocks in wp-admin. In Essential Blocks the free form sends an email and keeps no record, so a lost email is a lost lead.
A mailing list you can actually connect
Otter ships Mailchimp and Brevo in the free plugin. Essential Blocks offers Mailchimp only, in Pro, and no Brevo at any tier.
Send people somewhere after they submit
Redirect on submit is free in Otter. In Essential Blocks it is a Pro feature, which means a thank you page costs a licence.
Unlimited client sites, not a site cap
Otter Agency covers unlimited client sites for $149 a year. Essential Blocks tops out at 100 sites and that plan lists at $349, so the gap widens with every site you take on.
What each side costs
Otter Pro
Priced on how many sites you run. Introductory pricing, renewals at full price.
Essential Blocks Pro
List prices. The site usually runs a promotion below these figures.
How to read those numbers
Essential Blocks is cheaper to start with, $49 at list price against our $69, and it sells a lifetime licence that we do not offer at all. Where the two diverge is scale. Otter Agency covers unlimited client sites for $149 a year, while the most Essential Blocks will license is 100 sites at $349. Both sides give you a window to change your mind, 14 days there and 30 days here, and in both cases the plugin keeps working if a licence lapses. You simply stop receiving updates and support until you renew.
Moving from Essential Blocks to Otter
You do not have to rebuild the site in a weekend. Both plugins can run at the same time while you move page by page.
Install Otter alongside Essential Blocks
Otter registers its own blocks and leaves existing Essential Blocks markup alone. Nothing on your live pages changes.
Start with the forms
Rebuild each form with an Otter Form block, set the save location to database, and reconnect Mailchimp or Brevo. This is the change you feel first, because submissions start being recorded.
Replace anything gated behind a licence
Sections that needed conditional display, a redirect after submit or a captcha can now be built on the free plugin.
Retire the blocks you no longer use
Once a page is fully on Otter, clear out the leftovers. Keep Essential Blocks installed while any page still depends on it, particularly if you used the WooCommerce blocks.
When Essential Blocks is the better pick
Three cases where we would point you at Essential Blocks instead.
Common questions
Is Otter Blocks actually free?
Yes. Otter Blocks is on WordPress.org and the free plugin includes forms with stored submissions, Mailchimp and Brevo, eight visibility conditions, the Popup block, per block custom CSS and the AI tools. Otter Pro adds the WooCommerce builder, dynamic content, the autoresponder, file upload and Stripe form fields, and CSV export of submissions.
Can I run Otter and Essential Blocks together?
Yes. They register separate blocks and do not conflict, which is the easiest way to migrate. Two block libraries do load two sets of assets, so it is worth removing the one you stop using once a page no longer needs it.
Does Essential Blocks really not save form submissions for free?
Its own documentation says the Save Responses options require Essential Blocks Pro, and the Form Responses screen in wp-admin is part of Pro. The free form block sends an email notification and keeps no record. Otter stores submissions in both its free and Pro versions.
Does Otter store form submissions without Pro?
Yes. Otter writes every valid submission to your WordPress database in both the free and Pro versions, and any administrator can read them under Otter Blocks in wp-admin. Exporting them as CSV or XML is the part that needs Otter Pro.
Do I need an API key to use the AI features?
In both plugins, yes. Neither ThemeIsle nor WPDeveloper resells AI, so you connect your own provider account and your provider bills you for usage. Neither one imposes a credit ceiling of its own.
What happens to my site if I let Otter Pro lapse?
Your pages keep rendering. You stop receiving Pro updates and support until you renew. Otter Pro is introductory priced, so renewals are at the full list price shown on the pricing page.
How we checked this
Verified August 2026 against primary sources: the WordPress.org listings for otter-blocks and essential-blocks; ThemeIsle documentation for the free versus Pro feature list, Form blocks, visibility conditions and marketing integrations; the Otter Pro pricing page; and Essential Blocks documentation for the form block, form responses, conditional display and AI content, plus their pricing table and the WPDeveloper Agency Bundle. Capabilities and prices change often, so tell us if you spot something stale and we will correct it.
Try the free plugin before you compare licences
Install Otter Blocks, build one form, store one submission and connect it to your mailing list. That is the whole argument, and it costs nothing to test.
Free forever on WordPress.org. Otter Pro from $69 a year with a 30 day money back guarantee.