Ad Widget for WordPress
by Broadstreet · Admin & Utilities
Also makes 6 other plugins · 11.8K+ installs across the portfolio →
Easily upload ad images and ad code to your sidebar. For those that don't need or want a complicated ad management system.
Try it live opens a temporary test site in your browser, which can take about 20 seconds to load. Plugins that rely on outside services or a full server may not work completely there.
Health
C 68/100
Stale · Open vulnerability
Active installs
2K+
≈2.5K estimated
Momentum
+33%
downloads vs prior 30d
Biggest opportunity: “ad”, “google” and “sidebar” aren't earning a slot. You list them, but you're not in the first 24 results for those searches. WordPress.org counts only your first five tags, so free the slot for a search you can win.
68 health vs 56 average across 5,895 Admin & Utilities plugins
Install conversion
How it's measured →0.6%
of downloads still active
At least 2K of 313.9K lifetime downloads are still running, in line with its category: the median Admin & Utilities plugin keeps 0.6%, across 4,187 plugins.
Downloads count every update, not just first installs, so older and more frequently released plugins read lower. Compare against other Admin & Utilities plugins, not across the directory. wp.org reports active installs as the bottom of a band, so the real rate is this or higher.
Details
Directory ranking optimization
How it's scored →How well this listing is tuned to rank in WordPress.org search, on the factors an owner controls. Not popularity, optimization.
Well optimized
Most to gain: Update recency
Updated 401 days ago, past the ~180 days where wp.org starts discounting
Tested up to WordPress 6.8.12, the current branch or newer
4.3★ over 16 reviews, smoothed to 4.15★ and held back under 25 reviews
5 of 5 tags set · short description in place
To rank higher: Last updated 401 days ago — ship an update; wp.org decays a listing's search weight after ~180 days.
Get the full rank-higher report →Search visibility
How it's tracked →Directory searches this plugin turns up in, and which way each one is moving. WordPress.org publishes no history of search positions, so this starts the day we first tracked a keyword and never backfills.
39
Momentum
Mixed: one swing, the rest drifting
0.0
Velocity
places per keyword, 20d
18%
Breadth
of keywords climbing, 20d
0.0
Acceleration
recent half vs earlier
wp.org is where the directory puts the plugin for that search. On merit is where it would sit if results were ranked on rating, support and updates, without the install boost. The last column is how far the wp.org position moved, from our first reading in the last 90 days to the latest.
| Keyword | wp.org | On merit | wp.org move, 90 days |
|---|---|---|---|
| ad widget | #8 | #16 | 0 |
| ad management | #13 | #14 | up 2 |
| ad your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| google your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| sidebar your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| tag your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| widget your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
12 searches this plugin appeared in over the last 90 days, 2 listed. 10 left out as unrelated or noise (years, numbers, stray words). 5 of its tags aren't in the top 24 for their own search.
What to do about it
- “ad”, “google” and “sidebar” aren't earning a slot. You list them, but you're not in the first 24 results for those searches. WordPress.org counts only your first five tags, so free the slot for a search you can win.
Daily downloads
Since 5 Oct 2022 · 1,488 days · wp.org + Plugin Pulse archive
30-day downloads
Rolling 30-day volume · peak 2.6K · peaks are release surges
Directory rank vs rivals
wp.org popularity rank over time · higher is better · when a rival's line climbs above yours, they've overtaken you
Rating trend
Star average over time · dips mark rough releases
Health trend
Composite health score, snapshotted daily
Update activity
How busy the existing users are, measured as downloads in the last 30 days for every 1,000 active sites. A spike means a new release everyone's pulling; a long, slow decline means an aging user base that updates less.
Release cadence
No release in a yearHow often this plugin actually ships. A steady rhythm is the maintenance signal a single "last updated" date can't show.
0
releases in the last 12 months
1.1y ago
latest release · v2.20.1 · 25 Sep 2025
36
tagged releases on record
Recent releases
What its installed base runs
via wordpress.orgShare of active installs on each version of this plugin · 71% run the current release. Green is the current release; a big slice on older versions is a user base that has stopped updating.
Estimated active installs
The public count shows “2K+”. Our estimate pins where the real number sits.
Crossed into this band 8 months ago; a band this size takes about a year or more to cross, which places it about 50% of the way through.
Install history since 27 May 2015
Security history
via Wordfence Intelligence1 open vulnerability affects the current version (2.20.1). 1 of 2 disclosed are patched.
- Open Medium · 4.4 WordPress Ad Widget <= 2.20.0 - Authenticated (Admin+) Stored Cross-Site Scripting ↗2024-04-26 CVE-2024-33696 Improper Neutralization of Input During Web Page Generation Affects <= 2.20.0 No patch available
- 2017-01-01 CVE-2017-20289 Improper Control of Filename for Include/Require Statement in PHP Program Affects < 2.12.0 Patched in 2.12.0
Vulnerability records provided by Wordfence Intelligence. Copyright 2012-2026 Defiant Inc. License and terms.
CVE records: Copyright 1999-2026 The MITRE Corporation. CVE terms of use.
Behavioral tests
via WP HiveAutomated install-time checks, tested on PHP 7.4.8 · WP 5.8.1
AI assistants
How it's measured →Whether ChatGPT and Claude name this plugin when asked the category question, and whether the readme gives them something to quote.
Not measured yet for this plugin’s topics. Its tracked searches are not among the measured topics. See the topics measured so far.
Readme readiness
4 of 8 pass · checked 31 Oct 2026Can an assistant quote this readme? Eight deterministic checks over the wp.org listing, no model involved.
- ! Says what it does Short description names no action; say what the plugin does for the site.
- ! Has a FAQ No FAQ section.
- ! FAQ asks real questions No FAQ to judge.
- ✓ Names who it is for Names its audience or use cases ("if you have", "for publishers").
- ! Names what it works with Names no plugin, service or platform it works with.
- ✓ Headings and lists 2 headings and 2 lists.
- ✓ Enough to quote 1,188 characters of description.
- ✓ Tags match the text All 5 tags appear in the text.
Growth timeline
Install-tier crossings we have observed, and how long each tier took to outgrow
- 2026-02-21 3K+ → 2K+ down after 262 days in tier
- 2025-06-04 4K+ → 3K+ down after 1 days in tier
- 2025-06-03 3K+ → 4K+ up after 25 days in tier
- 2025-05-09 4K+ → 3K+ down after 1 days in tier
- 2025-05-08 3K+ → 4K+ up after 1 days in tier
- 2025-05-07 4K+ → 3K+ down after 292 days in tier
- 2024-07-19 5K+ → 4K+ down after 283 days in tier
- 2023-10-10 6K+ → 5K+ down after 183 days in tier
Competes with
The plugins that solve the same job, ranked by shared tags then reach, closest match first. The letter on the right is each plugin's health grade (A best, F worst).
-
Image Widget 100K+ installs · 4.8★ · 3 shared tags A - T Taxonomy Dropdown Widget 1K+ installs · 4.2★ · 3 shared tags B
- T Taxonomy List Widget 1K+ installs · 4.1★ · 3 shared tags B
- P Posts By Tag 1K+ installs · 3.8★ · 3 shared tags D
-
Recent Posts Widget With Thumbnails 100K+ installs · 4.8★ · 2 shared tags A -
Custom Sidebars – Dynamic Sidebar Classic Widget Area Manager 100K+ installs · 4.7★ · 2 shared tags A
Embed this report card
Drop a live Pulse card for Ad Widget for WordPress into a readme, a review or a deck. It updates itself.
<iframe src="https://plugins.wpmayor.com/embed/ad-widget" width="480" height="300" style="border:0" loading="lazy" title="Ad Widget for WordPress — Plugin Pulse"></iframe> Ad Widget for WordPress: 2K+ active installs, 4.3★ (16 reviews). Plugin Pulse (WP Mayor), as of 2026-10-31. https://plugins.wpmayor.com/plugin/ad-widget
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