MainWP Favorites

Frequently used plugins and themes are easier to reuse when they have a defined place in your site-management workflow. MainWP Favorites adds that place to the MainWP Dashboard, keeping a local collection of items you regularly install across multiple WordPress sites. It is aimed at developers, agencies, and site owners who want a repeatable way to find and manage the same tools without relying on the WordPress.org Favorites API.

A focused catalogue

The main idea is straightforward: save plugins and themes as favourites, organise them, and work with the collection from the central dashboard. That is more useful than a browser bookmark when the same items belong on several sites, because the list lives alongside the rest of your MainWP site-management work.

The local storage approach also matters. Favourites are saved on your Dashboard rather than sent through the WordPress.org Favorites API. For teams that prefer to keep their selection of tools within their own management environment, that gives the extension a clearer privacy position than a feature built around an external favourites service.

Useful management actions

MainWP Favorites is built around a short set of practical actions rather than a broad administration suite. The vendor lists these capabilities:

• Centralised management of favourite plugins and themes across WordPress sites.
• One-click installation from the MainWP Dashboard.
• Categories for arranging favourites and finding them more quickly.
• Automatic updates for favourite plugins and themes.
• Status reports showing the state of favourite items across sites.
• Sharing favourite items with team members or clients.

Together, these features give the collection a job beyond simple bookmarking. Categories help separate tools by project or purpose, while status reports provide a way to see how those selected items are doing across managed sites. Sharing also suits collaborative maintenance, where a client or colleague needs access to the same agreed set of tools.

Built for repeat work

The extension makes most sense in a workflow with recurring site builds or maintenance tasks. A developer can keep a familiar group of themes and plugins together, then use the MainWP Dashboard to install them on another managed site. An agency can organise its preferred tools into categories and give collaborators a common reference list rather than maintaining separate personal notes.

Automatic updates extend that workflow after installation. Instead of treating favourites as a static shortlist, MainWP Favorites presents them as items to track across the sites connected to the dashboard. The value is therefore strongest for operators who already manage several installations through MainWP and want their preferred tools visible in the same place.

Where it falls short

The first limitation is its dependence on the MainWP Dashboard. This is an extension for an existing multi-site management setup, not a general-purpose favourites manager for a standalone WordPress installation. Its usefulness falls sharply if your work does not already take place through MainWP.

There is also limited detail about control over updates and collaboration. Automatic updates are convenient, but the supplied description does not explain approval steps, scheduling, or site-by-site exclusions, so organisations with formal release checks will need to clarify that workflow. Likewise, sharing is listed as a feature, but no information is given about team roles or permissions. That leaves the practical boundaries of client and colleague access uncertain.

Who should use it

MainWP Favorites is a good fit for developers, agencies, and site owners maintaining multiple WordPress installations with a repeatable set of plugins and themes. It combines a private, dashboard-based favourites list with categorisation, installation, updates, and status reporting. Choose it for centralised tool management inside MainWP; do not treat it as a replacement for the dashboard itself or as a full deployment policy system.