How to Display Important Profile Fields on BuddyPress Members

Two named plugins that used to appear in guides like this one, “BuddyPress Custom Profile Menu” and “BuddyPress Profile Custom Fields”, don’t actually exist under those names on WordPress.org (confirmed via a direct search of the plugin directory). If you’ve gone looking for them and come up empty, that’s why. Here’s what actually works.

Option 1: Template Overrides

This part holds up: BuddyPress’s directory and profile-header layout live in template files you can override without touching BuddyPress core.

1. In your theme (a child theme, ideally, so updates don’t wipe your changes), find or create /buddypress/.
2. For the member directory layout, copy over members/members-loop.php and edit the markup to show whatever profile fields you want in the listing.
3. For the profile page header, copy over members/single/member-header.php and edit it the same way.

Editing BuddyPress’s own copies directly will get overwritten on the next update, so always work from a child theme or a custom template folder.

Option 2: Real Plugins for This

BuddyPress Profile Pro is a genuine, actively maintained plugin for this (v2.6.0, $49-129/yr or $149-349 lifetime). It adds repeater fields, conditional field logic, and control over which fields show where, on the directory, the header, or both, without editing template files.

If you just need more field types (star ratings, color pickers, multi-select) rather than layout control, BP Xprofile Custom Field Types is free, active, and does exactly that (v1.3.1, 150,000+ downloads).

Test any template edits or new plugins on staging first. A BuddyPress-specific plugin conflict is easier to spot before it’s live.