If you deactivate the plugin, certain features will stop working, and will affect the design of the site.
This is the general nature of WordPress plugins and we have no control over it; similar to how your Elementor designed pages won’t retain the design (CSS) if you deactivate Elementor.
In short, all the styling related features will stop applying the required CSS to the applied widgets. Rest other features that don’t add elements or styling will remain.
In detail, here are changes that could happen to your site on disabling the plugin, depending on the features/powerups you have used:
- Flex Wrap and CSS Grid Layout: It will stop applying. The layouts will revert back to default positioning.
- Quick Spacers: No effect on your site. The spacing settings are in live-sync with Elementor’s spacing setting from the Advanced tab.
- Page Grid: No effect, since it’s just a ruler overlaid on top of your page.
- Value Nudging: No effect since it’s just a utility enhancing input number controls.
- Shape Dividers: Will stop appearing on the site. On the sections where it’s applied, it’ll become flat, like a normal section without a shape divider.
- Blobs: Will stop showing up on the pages.
- Column Order: Won’t apply, i.e. reset back to the original order.
- Gradients, Shadows, Transformations, Filter Effects, Transition (i.e. all CSS enhancement features): The styling won’t apply anymore and the element’s look will revert back to the way it was without them.