Download ZIP Button Not Showing on Plugins/Themes Pages

Problem Description #

After installing and activating the plugin, the Download buttons that should appear next to each plugin/theme are not visible on the WordPress admin Plugins or Appearance → Themes screens.

Common symptoms / error messages:

• No “Download” or “Download ZIP” link beside plugin or theme entries.

• Only the plugin’s Settings page is visible and the “Download All” tool, but not per-item download buttons.

Cause:
Several possible causes: a theme or admin UI plugin altering the admin list markup, another plugin conflict preventing the plugin’s admin hooks from running, missing plugin assets due to wp_head() or wp_footer() not being present (rare), or user expectations, the plugin’s per-item buttons are added on the standard Plugins and Themes admin lists and can be affected by custom admin list filters or other plugins that modify those pages. WordPress.org

Solution – step-by-step #

1. Confirm plugin is installed & activated
   1. Go to Plugins → Installed Plugins and confirm Download Plugins and Themes in ZIP from Dashboard (or similar name) is active.

2. Verify you’re looking at the standard admin list
   1. Open Plugins → Installed Plugins (not a filtered/custom admin view). The download buttons are injected into the standard list table. If you use a plugin that alters admin layout (e.g., Admin Columns, WP List Table customizers), temporarily disable it and check again.

3. Test for plugin conflicts
   1. Temporarily deactivate all other plugins except WooCommerce (if used) and the Download plugin. If the buttons appear, reactivate your plugins one by one to find the conflict.

4. Switch to a default admin theme/appearance
   1. If you use an admin theme or role-based UI plugin, temporarily disable it or test on a staging site using the default admin UI. Some admin customizers remove action links from the list table.

5. Check user role/capabilities
   1. The plugin’s download actions require Administrator capability. Ensure the current account has manage_options or activate_plugins capabilities (Admin role).

6. Inspect the page for JS errors
   1. Open Browser Dev Tools → Console while viewing the Plugins page. If JS errors are shown, they may prevent action links from rendering. Resolve the source of the JS error (often from another plugin).

7. Confirm plugin settings (Download All vs per-item)
   1. Visit WPFactory → Download Plugins and Themes (or plugin settings). Ensure there’s no setting toggled that hides per-item buttons. (Some settings control which pages show download links.)

8. If still not visible – provide debug info to support
   1. Collect: WordPress version, plugin version, list of active plugins, theme name, user role, and a screenshot. Open a support ticket with that info. Plugin support has already asked users for similar info in forum replies. WordPress.org

Prerequisites #

• Administrator user role.

• Plugin version up-to-date.
  

Additional Notes / Prevention #

• If your site uses admin customizers or security plugins, document their effect on admin UIs and test plugin updates on staging first.
  

Keep an admin test account with full rights for debugging.