How to Install After Effects Plugins
After Effects is a powerful tool for motion design and VFX. Installing a third party plugin makes After Effects even more powerful by unlocking missing features to improve your work and speed up your process.
To install a plugin, you first need to know what type of After Effects tool it is. In After Effects, a "plug-in" is a specific type of tool that manipulates pixels and usually is applied from the Effect menu. But "plugin" is also used as an umbrella term to cover all third party After Effects Plug-ins, Extensions (aka CEP), ScriptUI Panels, Scripts, and Presets.
You can determine what type of After Effects plugin a tool is by the file extension (be sure to unzip your download first):
- Plug-in (.aex or .plugin)
- Extension (.zxp)
- Script or Script UI Panel (.jsx or .jsxbin)
- Preset (.ffx)
How to install an After Effects plug-in (.aex or .plugin)
On Windows, move the .aex file to the folder here: C:\Program Files\Adobe\Adobe After Effects 2023\Support Files\Plug-ins
On Mac, move the .plugin file to the folder here: Applications/Adobe After Effects 2023/Plug-ins/
Restart After Effects, and you should see your new plugin from the Effect menu. Depending on the plug-in you may need a license code in order to activate it.
How to install an After Effects extension (.zxp)
The easiest way to install an After Effects extension is with the ZXP/UXP Installer from aescripts + aeplugins.
- Download and open ZXP installer
- Drag your .zxp file into ZXP installer
- Restart After Effects
You should see your new extension from the Window > Extensions menu. Depending on the extension you may need a license code in order to activate it.
How to install an After Effects script (.jsx or .jsxbin)
After Effects scripts come in two forms: ScriptUI Panels and Scripts. ScriptUI Panels are their own panels with their own UI within your After Effects UI, whereas Scripts are run from the menu without a UI.
Installing an After Effects ScriptUI Panel
On Windows, move the .jsx or .jsxbin file to the folder here: C:\Program Files\Adobe\Adobe After Effects 2023\Support Files\Scripts\ScriptUI Panels
On Mac, move the .jsx or .jsxbin file to the folder here: Applications/Adobe After Effects 2023/Scripts/ScriptUI Panels
Restart After Effects, and you should see your new ScriptUI Panel from the Window menu.
Installing an After Effects script
On Windows, move the .jsx or .jsxbin file to the folder here: C:\Program Files\Adobe\Adobe After Effects 2023\Support Files\Scripts
On Mac, move the .jsx or .jsxbin file to the folder here: Applications/Adobe After Effects 2023/Scripts
Restart After Effects, and you should see your new Script from the File > Scripts menu.
How to install an After Effects preset (.ffx)
On Windows, move the .ffx file to the folder here: Documents\Adobe\After Effects CC 2023\User Presets\
On Mac, move the .ffx file to the folder here: Documents/Adobe/After Effects 2023/User Presets
In After Effects navigate to the Effects & Presets Window, open the menu then click Refresh List. You should see your new preset. You can find it easier by typing the name into the search bar.
Other ways of installing plugins
Some developers or platforms might recommend their own method of installing their plugins. For example, if you purchased a plugin from aescripts + aeplugins, you can use their free Manager App to install it.
If you are having trouble, be sure to check the user manual for the specific plugin you are trying to install. If you're still stuck, try contacting the plugin developer for help.