School Staff Directory vs Simple Staff List vs EmbedStaff
Three real products. Three different jobs.
Simple Staff List is a free WordPress.org plugin. You add people in WordPress, set an order, and put a shortcode on a page.
EmbedStaff is a hosted K-12 staff directory. You manage the roster in their dashboard and paste an embed snippet on any site. It is not a WordPress plugin.
School Staff Directory is a paid WordPress plugin for a school roster. CSV import with preview, search and filter, groups, and profiles that stay on your WordPress install.
This page is not a claim that we are the only alternative, or that we have more installs.
What each one actually is
Simple Staff List
A free WordPress.org plugin by Brett Shumaker. Version 2.2.5. Last listed update April 21, 2025.
WordPress 3.0+, PHP 5.4+, tested up to 6.8.0. The listing notes it has not been tested with the latest 3 major WordPress releases.
Fields: name, photo, position, email, phone, and bio. Drag-and-drop order. Shortcode [simple-staff-list]. Groups via the group= attribute. Template and custom CSS. Forum support.
CSV export is in the changelog for 2.0. No CSV import is listed. Visitor search is not advertised.
EmbedStaff
A hosted K-12 staff directory. It is not a WordPress plugin. You manage the roster in their dashboard. The roster lives with them.
Search by name or keyword. Department filters. Photos. Embed on WordPress, Squarespace, Wix, and Webflow.
Free: $0, up to 15 listings. Starter $15/mo, up to 75 listings. Pro $39/mo, up to 300 listings. Business $79/mo, up to 1,500 listings. Enterprise $199/mo, unlimited listings. Paid plans include a 7-day free trial. Enterprise annual billing is available on request.
CSV import on Starter and above. Staff Sync on Pro and above.
School Staff Directory
A paid WordPress plugin for a school roster. Profiles stay on your WordPress install.
WordPress 5.8+, PHP 7.4+. Shortcode. CSV import with preview. Search and filter. Drag-and-drop order. Unlimited groups.
Photo, title, email, phone, room, and bio. Photo upload. Color and layout settings. Does not inherit your theme.
Single $79/year. Multi $149/year. District $299/year. 30-day refund. Next-business-day email. Freemius is the merchant of record. A license check phones home to Freemius for updates and seats only.
Sourced comparison
Only rows we can source. Simple Staff List from WordPress.org, checked 2026-08-19. EmbedStaff from the live pricing page, checked 2026-08-27. School Staff Directory from the live plugin page on this site.
Some EmbedStaff pages still show $19. This page uses the live pricing page.
| Topic | Simple Staff List | EmbedStaff | School Staff Directory |
|---|---|---|---|
| What it is | Free WordPress.org plugin | Hosted embed. Not a WordPress plugin. | Paid WordPress plugin |
| Where the roster lives | On your WordPress install | On EmbedStaff's service | On your WordPress install |
| Price | Free | Free $0, up to 15 listings. Starter $15/mo, up to 75 listings. Pro $39/mo, up to 300 listings. Business $79/mo, up to 1,500 listings. Enterprise $199/mo, unlimited listings. Paid plans: 7-day free trial. | Single $79/year. Multi $149/year. District $299/year. |
| CSV import | Not listed | Starter and above | Yes, with preview |
| CSV export | Yes. Changelog 2.0. | Not listed on the pricing page we checked | No |
| Visitor search | Not advertised | Search by name or keyword. Department filters. | Search and filter by name, title, or group |
| Groups | Shortcode group= attribute | Department filters | Unlimited groups |
| Order | Drag-and-drop | Not listed on the pages we checked | Drag-and-drop |
| Profile fields | Name, photo, position, email, phone, bio | Photos | Photo, title, email, phone, room, bio |
| How you display it | Shortcode [simple-staff-list] | Embed snippet on WordPress, Squarespace, Wix, Webflow | Shortcode |
| Styling | Template and custom CSS | Color and font customization on Starter and above | Color and layout settings. Does not inherit theme. |
| Support | WordPress.org forum | Email support on Starter and above | Next-business-day email |
| Requirements | WordPress 3.0+, PHP 5.4+, tested up to 6.8.0. Listing notes not tested with the latest 3 major WordPress releases. | Hosted. No WordPress version requirement. | WordPress 5.8+, PHP 7.4+ |
| Staff Sync | Not listed | Pro and above | Not a feature of this plugin |
When to pick each
Simple Staff List
You want a free WordPress.org plugin. You will add people in WordPress, set an order, and use a shortcode. You do not need visitor search or CSV import. You do get CSV export.
EmbedStaff
You want a hosted directory you can paste onto WordPress or another site builder, and you are fine with the roster living on their service.
School Staff Directory
You want a paid WordPress plugin for a school roster, with CSV import preview, search and filter, and groups, and you want the roster to stay on your WordPress install.
Price
School Staff Directory leads with Single at $79/year.
Purchase is not completed on this page. Licenses are sold on the School Staff Directory page.
- Single: $79/year. One WordPress site.
- Multi: $149/year. Up to 5 sites.
- District: $299/year. District-wide for one organization. Unlimited sites.
- 30-day refund. Next-business-day email.
- Freemius is the merchant of record.
What this page will not say
- We do not have a Gutenberg block. This page does not claim one, and it does not claim we beat anyone on Gutenberg.
- Simple Staff List has CSV export. We do not. This page does not claim we beat them on export.
- We do not have photo crop.
- We do not claim WCAG, and we do not claim we beat anyone on accessibility.