5 steps · about 2 min

Zip in

Pulse panel plugins use the ZIP path and AE Theme uses Windows setup. Pick the path for the file you downloaded, then restart After Effects when the install is done.

zip + setup win / mac check AE badge

Pulse plugins page with the red Grab Pulse ex download button highlighted — hit the red **Grab** button on the plugin you want

step 01

Grab the download

Head to the plugins page and hit download on the one you want. Pulse downloads as a ZIP and AE Theme downloads as a Windows setup EXE.

✦Not sure which? Pulse is a workspace panel, AE Theme recolors the interface, and unavailable or pending tools are clearly marked.

Windows 11 right-click menu on the ZIP with Extract All highlighted — 1. right-click the ZIP → Extract All…

Windows Extract Compressed Folders dialog with the Extract button highlighted — 2. hit Extract in the dialog

WinRAR right-click menu showing Extract Here as an alternative — **or, with WinRAR / 7-Zip:** right-click → Extract Here

step 02

ZIP or setup

For ZIP plugins, right-click → Extract All, then Extract in the dialog (or just double-click it on Mac). For AE Theme, run the setup EXE and follow the installer.

✦Read the readme.txt when a ZIP includes one. For setup betas, note your Windows and AE versions if something acts strange.

Windows Explorer showing the After Effects Scripts ScriptUI Panels folder with plugin files inside — drop the plugin into **Support Files › Scripts › ScriptUI Panels**

step 03

Drop it in AE

For ZIP panel plugins, quit After Effects first, then move the plugin file into your ScriptUI Panels folder. AE Theme uses a setup EXE instead, so you can skip this folder step for that tool.

Windows C:\Program Files\Adobe\Adobe After Effects <ver>\Support Files\Scripts\ScriptUI Panels\

macOS /Applications/Adobe After Effects <ver>/Scripts/ScriptUI Panels/

✦Swap <ver> for your version, e.g. 2024. If you downloaded AE Theme, use the installer and restart AE after it finishes.

After Effects Edit menu open, Preferences → Scripting & Expressions highlighted — 1. Edit → Preferences → Scripting & Expressions

Preferences dialog with Allow Scripts to Write Files and Access Network ticked — 2. tick “Allow Scripts to Write Files and Access Network”

step 04 · first time only

Flip one setting

Open AE and go to Preferences → Scripting & Expressions. Tick "Allow Scripts to Write Files and Access Network." You only ever do this once.

✦Windows: Edit → Preferences. Mac: After Effects → Settings.

After Effects Window menu with Extensions submenu open, showing installed plugins including pulseJT and Flow — Window → Extensions → your plugin (e.g. **pulseJT**)

step 05

Open it & go

Restart After Effects, then open the plugin from Window → Extensions — it shows up in the list under its own name. Drag it into your layout and dock it wherever feels right.

✦That's it — no license key, no watermark. Go make something loud.

when it won't cooperate

Something broke?

Don't panic — it's almost always one of these five. Tap a symptom to see why it happens and the exact fix.

It's not in the Window menu step 03

9 times out of 10 the file landed in the wrong folder — or After Effects was still open when you dropped it in, so it never scanned it.

the fixConfirm it's inside Scripts › ScriptUI Panels — not just Scripts — then fully quit and reopen AE. A reload from the menu won't do it; it only scans that folder on launch.

Panel opens but it's blank or greyed out step 04

The panel loaded fine, but AE is blocking it from running because the scripting permission is still off.

the fixTurn on Allow Scripts to Write Files and Access Network under Preferences → Scripting & Expressions, then restart AE and it'll wake right up.

Mac says it can't verify the developer macOS

macOS is cautious about files from outside the App Store. Nothing's wrong with the plugin — it just needs a one-time OK.

the fixRight-click the plugin → Open, or allow it under System Settings → Privacy & Security. You only approve it once.

GIF Panel isn't doing anything needs Flow

GIF Panel doesn't run on its own — it customizes the Flow plugin, so with no Flow in the project there's nothing for it to hook into.

the fixInstall Flow first and apply it to a layer. Once Flow's active, GIF Panel latches straight on.

Wrong AE version / old build AE version

Pulse panel plugins target After Effects 2021 and up. AE Theme beta is stricter and expects After Effects 2026 build 26.0.0.67.

the fixCheck Help → About After Effects for your version. If you dropped a ZIP plugin into an older install's folder, move it into your 2021+ ScriptUI Panels folder instead.

Pulse devil monkey holding a Discord icon

None of that fixed it?

Drop into the Discord and post your OS, your AE version, and what you're seeing. Real answer, real fast.

Ask in Discord

all set?

Got it running? Go cook.

Grab another drop while you're here, or hop in the Discord if step three fought back.

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