Standard Installation
- Download the plugin zip file from GitHub releases or the product page.
- In your WordPress admin, go to Plugins > Add New > Upload Plugin.
- Upload the zip file and click Install Now.
- Activate the plugin.
Alternatively, extract the zip into wp-content/plugins/acf-blocks-plugin/ and activate from the Plugins screen.
ACF Dependency
The plugin requires either Advanced Custom Fields Pro 6.0+ or Secure Custom Fields (the free fork). On activation, if neither is detected, the plugin attempts to install and activate Secure Custom Fields from WordPress.org automatically.
If ACF is not available at runtime, the plugin shows an admin notice and does not register any blocks. The license manager still loads independently so you can enter your license key before installing ACF.
Activation and Deactivation
On activation, the plugin:
- Checks whether ACF Pro or Secure Custom Fields is installed.
- If neither is found, downloads and activates Secure Custom Fields from WordPress.org.
- Flushes rewrite rules.
On deactivation, rewrite rules are flushed.
No data is deleted on deactivation. License data, image files, and post meta created by blocks remain intact.
License Activation
After activating the plugin, go to Settings > ACF Blocks License and enter your license key. A valid license enables automatic updates through the WordPress dashboard. See the License and Updates chapter for details.
Verifying Installation
After activation, open any post or page in the block editor. You should see an “ACF Blocks” category in the block inserter containing all 29 blocks. If the category does not appear, confirm that ACF Pro or Secure Custom Fields is active.