Thrive Automator vs Code Engine – PHP Snippets, AI Functions & Automation for WordPress

Code Engine is a snippets manager that doesn’t stop at snippets. Yes, it runs your PHP and JavaScript exactly where and when you want: frontend, backend, on a schedule, or inside your content. But its real magic is what happens after you write a function: the same little piece of code instantly becomes a tool your AI chatbots can call, a step you can drag into a visual workflow, and an endpoint the outside world can trigger. One function, three superpowers. Most “code snippets” plugins stop at a textarea and a toggle. Code Engine treats your functions as first-class building blocks for the whole Meow Apps ecosystem, and for anything that can speak REST. Think out of the box, let your creativity flow, because the possibilities really are endless! ✨ For more, check the official website and come say hi on the Discord. Quick Intro Hello! ☀️ I built Code Engine because I was tired of pasting mystery snippets into functions.php and praying. I wanted a place where small bits of code are organized, safe, AI-assisted, and reusable everywhere. Here’s the idea. You write a function (or let the AI write it for you from a plain-English description). That function immediately shows up in three places: AI Engine: your chatbots and MCP clients (Claude, ChatGPT, Claude Code) can call it as a tool, with real arguments. Ask “how many orders shipped today?” and your chatbot runs your function to answer. Workflow Engine: your function appears in the step picker as its very own block. Drag it onto the canvas, wire it between an AI step and a Slack step, done. No glue code. REST / External tools: give it a secure endpoint and a token, then trigger it from Make.com, n8n, Zapier, a cron job, or a webhook. You never wrote an “integration.” You just wrote a function. Code Engine did the rest. 🤝 Core Modules 🧩 Snippets Manager Backend, Frontend, Persistent, Scheduled, Functions, and in-content (PHP/JS) snippets, all in one clean dashboard with tags, search, scope filters, and priorities. 🪄 AI-Assisted Coding Describe what you want in plain English and let AI Engine write the snippet: code, name, arguments, and scope included. Refine existing code or implement it straight from your comments. 🤖 Functions as AI Tools Every Function snippet becomes a function-calling tool and an MCP tool, so your AI Engine chatbots (and external AI agents) can actually do things on your site, not just talk. 🔀 Functions as Workflow Steps Workflow Engine surfaces each of your functions as its own draggable step. Your custom logic becomes a first-class citizen on the automation canvas. 🌐 External Access (REST) Expose any runnable snippet through a secured REST endpoint with a bearer token. Perfect for Make.com, n8n, webhooks, and scheduled external jobs. 🛡️ Safe Mode A snippet that throws a fatal error is automatically caught and disabled before it can take your site down. Code with confidence. ⏰ Scheduling Run a snippet daily at a chosen time via WP-Cron (reports, cleanups, syncs) without touching the server crontab. 🧱 Code Blocks & Shortcodes (Pro) Drop PHP or JS straight into a post or page with a Gutenberg block or the [code-engine] shortcode, with safety guards. 🧩 Snippets, the way they should be Code Engine organizes your code by scope, so each snippet runs exactly where it belongs: Persistent: runs everywhere (frontend and backend). Your everyday “add this to functions.php” code, but managed. Frontend: runs only on the public site. Backend: runs only in the admin. Function: a named, callable function with typed arguments and defaults. This is the reusable building block (see below). Scheduled: runs on a WP-Cron schedule, at the hour and minute you pick. Content (PHP / JS): runs inside a specific post or page, via a Gutenberg Code Block or the [code-engine] shortcode (Pro). Everything is searchable, taggable, sortable by priority, and importable/exportable. The CodeMirror editor gives you proper syntax highlighting and keyboard shortcuts (Cmd+S to save, Cmd+Enter to run). A nikic/php-parser pass validates your PHP before it ever runs. 🪄 Let AI write it for you Don’t feel like writing the boilerplate? Describe the snippet in plain language and Code Engine, powered by AI Engine, generates the whole thing: the code, a sensible name, a description, the right scope, and, for functions, the argument list with names, types, and defaults. Already have code? Ask the AI to modify it from a prompt, or write a few comments describing what you want and let it fill in the implementation. It’s pair programming, right inside your dashboard. ✨ The big idea: write once, use everywhere This is what makes Code Engine different. A Function snippet is not just code you call from other code. It’s a reusable capability that the rest of your stack can plug into. The moment you save it, the same function is available in three places at once: 1. As an AI tool, for chatbots and AI agents With AI Engine active, your functions are exposed through function calling and over MCP (Model Context Protocol). Your on-site chatbot can run them mid-conversation, and external AI agents (Claude, Claude Code, ChatGPT, OpenClaw) can call them too. Want a chatbot that checks stock, looks up a booking, or kicks off a process? Write the function; the chatbot gains the skill. 2. As a workflow step, for automation With Workflow Engine, every active function shows up in the Add-step picker as its own block, named after your snippet, with one input per argument. Drag it onto the canvas and wire it between other steps: an AI step that summarizes, your function that saves, a Social Engine step that posts. There’s also a generic “Execute snippet (by ID / by name)” step when you want to call one dynamically. You never write integration code; your function is the integration. 3. As a REST endpoint, for the outside world Give a snippet a custom endpoint name and a bearer token, and it’s instantly callable from anywhere: POST /wp-json/code-engine/v1/snippets-endpoint/your-endpoint Pass arguments as JSON in the body, secure it with a token, and trigger it from Make.com, n8n, Zapier, GitHub Actions, or a humble cron job. Automation without a middleware bill. 🛡️ Safe by default Running arbitrary code is powerful, so Code Engine takes safety seriously: Safe Mode catches fatal errors and auto-disables the offending snippet, so a typo never white-screens your site. REST whitelisting means global snippets only run on trusted REST routes by default, so you choose what to open up. Per-snippet tokens secure your external endpoints. Validation with a real PHP parser before code is saved. For developers who want fewer guardrails, there’s a “Bypass REST Security” option and filters (mwcode_rest_authorized, mwcode_rest_whitelist) to tailor exactly what’s allowed. Works beautifully with the Meow Apps family Code Engine is one engine in a connected set, each one useful alone, magical together: AI Engine: chatbots, content generation, and MCP. Turns your functions into AI tools. Workflow Engine: visual automation. Turns your functions into draggable steps. SEO Engine: smart, lightweight AI SEO. Social Engine: schedule and automate social posts. Why Code Engine? Reusable, not throwaway Other snippet plugins give you a place to paste code. Code Engine gives you a place to build capabilities that your AI, your workflows, and your external tools can all use. Native to WordPress Clean, fast, and built the WordPress way. No clunky external dashboards, no bloat. AI-native Write snippets with AI, expose them to AI. The whole loop lives in your wp-admin. Developer friendly REST API, MCP tools, function calling, scheduling, import/export, and plenty of filters to hook into. Cared for Part of the Meow Apps family, with regular updates and a real human behind it. 💕

Create smart automations that integrate your website with your favourite apps and plugins As we continue to grow and expand our product suite at Thrive Themes, we’ve made the strategic decision to retire Thrive Automator and partner with our sister brand, Uncanny Automator Learn more about what this means for you and Thrive Automator. Thrive Automator is a FREE plugin that lets you create powerful automations by connecting your favorite tools with your WordPress website. Explore the official Thrive Automator page Have you ever wished you could automatically add customers to your email list when they purchase a product? Or automatically give new customers or clients access to an online course as soon as they make a payment? How about automatically tagging your most engaged blog commentors in your email marketing service, so you can send them a special offer or ask them for a great testimonial to add to your website? Join over 15,000 Thrive Automator users and build your own WordPress automations today! THRIVE AUTOMATOR IS 100% FREE No weird ”freemium” bait and switch. No intrusive ads. No limits. Many other ’automation’ plugins pretend to be free, but then ask you to pay for additional functionality, like Filters and Delays. With Thrive Automator, everything is included for the low price of completely FREE! Install Thrive Automator on your website today and immediately start building powerful automations to help grow your online business. THRIVE AUTOMATOR APPS & INTEGRATIONS Thrive Automator connects to your favorite tools, plugins, services and web applications, allowing you to automate repetitive tasks and focus on growing your business. Here’s just some of the most popular integrations that you can start using right now… Email Marketing Apps Connect Thrive Automator to email marketing tools, like ActiveCampaign, MailChimp, ConvertKit, and Drip. Automatically add new subscribers, add and remove tags, grant access to online courses, send and receive webhook data with WordPress and your other online tools… and much more. Payment, Checkout & eCommerce Tools Connect Thrive Automator to your eCommerce and payment services, like WooCommerce and Studiocart. Now you can automatically trigger automations – for example, giving them access to an online course or adding them to your email list – whenever a customer purchases a product or subscription, or receives a refund. Marketing and CRM Services Connect Thrive Automator to your favorite online CRM and marketing services, like Ontraport, Hubspot, and Keap (formerly Infusionsoft), to instantly pass along customer data and events to other apps in your business. Now your sales and marketing funnel can react dynamically to the customer and campaign triggers you set. Which apps does Thrive Automator integrate with directly? ActiveCampaign AWeber Campaign Monitor Constant Contact ConvertKit Drip Elementor Events Manager FluentCRM GetResponse HubSpot iContact Keap (formerly Infusionsoft) KlickTipp MadMimi MailChimp MailerLite MailPoet MailRelay Ontraport SendFox SendinBlue SendLane Sendy SG Autorépondeur Studiocart Thrive Apprentice Thrive Architect Thrive Leads Thrive Quiz Builder Thrive Theme Builder Thrive Ultimatum Upsell Plugin WishList Member WooCommerce WordPress WP Fusion Zoho Campaigns Some of these integrations require to have a 100% free complimentary Thrive Themes account to set up the connection, others simply require to have the 3rd party plugin installed. THRIVE AUTOMATOR ALSO SUPPORTS WEBHOOKS Looking for another app that’s not in the list? You might find it’s already fully supported using webhooks. Webhooks are a powerful and flexible way to send real-time data to and from Thrive Automator, so you can connect with ANY service that supports them. Read more about using Thrive Automator’s powerful webhooks. Once again: Thrive Automator can integrate with any online tool that can send or receive webhooks. No API or native integration necessary. THRIVE AUTOMATOR LEARNING RESOURCES Want some guidance or inspiration getting started with Thrive Automator? Check out the resources below… Getting Started with Thrive Automator – A quick guide about Thrive Automator, and how to get the most out of it Create Your First Automation with Thrive Automator – Learn how to create your first automation using Thrive Automator A BIG list of all the Actions, Triggers, and Filters supported by Thrive Automator Thrive Automator… Now 100% FREE for everyone! – Read our official announcement about the launch of Thrive Automator SUPPORT OPTIONS The best way to start exploring Thrive Automator is by creating your own automation recipes. But if you want to learn even more about creating automations on your business website, or if you have questions about integrations and use cases, be sure to check out the resources below. Join our Facebook group ➤ Chat with thousands of Thrive plugin users in our helpful Facebook community. We’d love to meet you and hear what you’re working on. You’re sure to find other Thrive Automator users who can help you build the perfect automations to grow your business. Reach out to the Thrive Themes support team ➤ If you have any issues installing, activating, connecting or getting started with Thrive Automator, just drop us a message and our friendly support team will set you on the right path. Thrive Suite customers can also access premium support, to find solutions for specific use cases and business goals. Subscribe to the Thrive Themes email list ➤ We’ll let you know about newly released Thrive Automator features, use cases, and integrations. Unsubscribe any time, no fuss.