Admin Menu Editor alternative

uiXpress vs Admin Menu Editor

The specialist plugin for reordering, renaming, and permissioning the WordPress admin menu.

About this comparison

If you are looking for an Admin Menu Editor alternative, this page compares what Admin Menu Editor actually ships with what uiXpress includes. Admin Menu Editor, by Janis Elsts, does one job extremely well: the wp-admin sidebar. The free WordPress.org version lets you drag items, rename them, change icons, and hide menus. Pro adds per-role permissions, hide-from-everyone-except-a-user rules, export, dragging items between menu levels, and opening items in a new window. It does not theme the admin, add analytics, or replace content screens. New regular plans listed in 2026 start at $49 Personal, $99 Plus, and $179 Agency, with separate lifetime tiers.

Compared against features published on adminmenueditor.com and public pricing available in .

Feature comparison

Feature comparison of uiXpress and Admin Menu Editor
Feature uiXpress Admin Menu Editor
Modern rebuilt admin UI
uiXpress: Vue admin shell that replaces default wp-admin screens, not a skin over core markupAdmin Menu Editor: Not available in Admin Menu Editor
Built-in analytics dashboard
uiXpress: Privacy-first traffic, users, media, WooCommerce, and site-health cards with date rangesAdmin Menu Editor: Not available in Admin Menu Editor
Admin dark mode
uiXpress: Dark Engine styles the full admin, including Gutenberg, classic screens, and third-party pluginsAdmin Menu Editor: Not available in Admin Menu Editor
White label branding
uiXpress: Logos, favicon, text replacement, and plugin renaming across the adminAdmin Menu Editor: Not available in Admin Menu Editor
Login page customization
uiXpress: Modern login layout, custom login URL, per-role redirects, and optional Cloudflare TurnstileAdmin Menu Editor: Not available in Admin Menu Editor
Global command search
uiXpress: Keyboard-first search across posts, users, taxonomies, plugins, and admin menu itemsAdmin Menu Editor: Not available in Admin Menu Editor
Admin menu editor
uiXpress: Menu Creator with drag-and-drop, role targeting, custom links, and import/exportAdmin Menu Editor: Best-in-class dedicated menu editor
Modern plugin manager
uiXpress: Split-panel plugin workspace with performance inspector, rollback, and fatal-error recoveryAdmin Menu Editor: Not available in Admin Menu Editor
Modern media library
uiXpress: Rebuilt media workspace with grid/list views, unused-file filters, tags, and replaceAdmin Menu Editor: Not available in Admin Menu Editor
Modern content tables
uiXpress: Rebuilt posts, pages, users, and comments tables with inline edit, filters, and batch actionsAdmin Menu Editor: Not available in Admin Menu Editor
Activity audit log
uiXpress: Searchable on-site activity log with before-and-after diffs, auth events, and retention controlsAdmin Menu Editor: Not available in Admin Menu Editor
Role and capability editor
uiXpress: Create and edit roles and grouped capabilities in a dedicated workspaceAdmin Menu Editor: Menu permissions by role on Pro — not a capability editor
Database explorer
uiXpress: Browse tables, inspect schema, and run guarded read-only SQL from the adminAdmin Menu Editor: Not available in Admin Menu Editor
Remote multi-site switcher
uiXpress: Connect remote WordPress sites with application passwords and switch without leaving adminAdmin Menu Editor: Not available in Admin Menu Editor
One-time license
uiXpress: Lifetime plans from Solo, with yearly billing as an optionAdmin Menu Editor: Pro offers yearly and lifetime tiers; free version is unlimited

Included Limited Not available

The short version.

Use Admin Menu Editor when the menu is the only problem. Use uiXpress when the menu is one piece of a modern admin you want to ship to clients.

Where Admin Menu Editor fits.

What it includes

  • Drag-and-drop reorder of admin menu and submenu items
  • Rename items and change menu icons
  • Hide menu items
  • Emergency reset URL for a broken menu
  • Pro: per-role menu permissions
  • Pro: hide a menu from everyone except a specific user
  • Pro: export menu configuration
  • Pro: move items between menu levels
  • Pro: open menu items in a new window

Strengths and limits

Strongest when

  • Deep, reliable menu editor used on a large number of sites
  • Clear free vs Pro split around permissions and export
  • Lifetime Pro plans are available

The boundary

  • Menu only — no admin theme, login, or white label
  • No analytics, activity log, media, plugins, or database tools
  • Free version can only restrict access further, not grant new menu access

Everything inside uiXpress.

Explore all features
Admin interface
  • Rebuilt Vue admin shell with sidebar, toolbar, and SPA navigation
  • Theme Designer with color presets, density, radius, and custom fonts
  • Dark Engine for native WordPress and third-party admin screens
  • Light, dark, system, or forced global theme
  • Custom logos, dark-mode logos, and admin favicon
  • Admin custom CSS and extra stylesheets
  • Frontend toolbar that matches the admin chrome
  • Disable uiXpress by role, user, or URL pattern
White label and login
  • Rename the plugin in the plugins list and settings menu
  • Find-and-replace text across menus, plugin headers, and Vue screens
  • Modern split-panel login page with optional side image
  • Custom login URL and per-role login redirects
  • Optional Cloudflare Turnstile on login
Dashboard and analytics
  • Custom dashboard with Overview, Analytics, and WooCommerce Store tabs
  • Per-user card layout: drag, resize, show, and hide
  • Built-in privacy-first analytics or Google Analytics 4
  • Page views, visitors, sessions, countries, referrers, devices, and campaigns
  • Real-time active visitors, conversions, and event tracking
  • Media analytics, user registrations, scheduled content, and server health
  • WooCommerce revenue, orders, products, customers, and coupons
Workspaces
  • Global command search with history, quick actions, and menu links
  • Menu Creator with role targeting, drafts, and import/export
  • Modern plugin manager with WordPress.org browse, ZIP upload, and bulk actions
  • Plugin performance profiler and update protector with rollback
  • Modern media library with unused-file filters, tags, SVG, and font uploads
  • Modern posts, pages, users, and comments tables with inline and batch edit
Admin tools
  • Activity logger with diffs, IP, user agent, and retention cleanup
  • Role editor with grouped capabilities and role cloning
  • Database explorer with schema view and SELECT-only SQL
  • Admin notices targeted by role or user
  • Remote site switcher with encrypted application passwords
  • Settings import/export and optional GitHub settings sync

Common questions.

Is uiXpress a good alternative to Admin Menu Editor?
Yes. uiXpress is an Admin Menu Editor alternative for teams that need a menu editor as part of a full admin replacement, not as a standalone plugin. Use Admin Menu Editor when the menu is the only problem. Use uiXpress when the menu is one piece of a modern admin you want to ship to clients.
Does uiXpress include an admin menu editor?
Yes. Menu Creator stores custom menus, supports drag-and-drop, role or user targeting, custom links, separators, icons, drafts, and import/export. Admin Menu Editor remains the more specialized standalone menu tool.
Is Admin Menu Editor an admin theme?
No. It only changes the menu. uiXpress changes the menu and the rest of the admin shell, plus the main content screens.
Can the free Admin Menu Editor grant new menu access?
No. The official docs say the free version can only restrict access further. Pro can assign menus by role. uiXpress targets menus by role or user in Menu Creator.

Ready to try uiXpress instead of Admin Menu Editor?

Lifetime and yearly plans. 14-day money-back guarantee.