Advanced Crossword
by dan009 · Uncategorized
Also makes 4 other plugins · 1.4K+ installs across the portfolio →
Create a beautiful, responsive 15x15 grid crossword to your liking. You have full control over the blank cells and the clues.
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
B 82/100
Few reviews
Active installs
70+
≈75 estimated
Momentum
+100%
low volume, under 1,000 downloads a month
Biggest opportunity: “puzzle” isn't earning a slot. You list it, but you're not in the first 24 results for that search. WordPress.org counts only your first five tags, so free the slot for a search you can win.
Install conversion
How it's measured →1.4%
of downloads still active
At least 70 of 4.9K lifetime downloads are still running, above its category: the median Uncategorized plugin keeps 0.6%, across 17,783 plugins.
Downloads count every update, not just first installs, so older and more frequently released plugins read lower. Compare against other Uncategorized plugins, not across the directory. wp.org reports active installs as the bottom of a band, so the real rate is this or higher.
This plugin shipped 3 releases in the last 12 months, and every existing install that updated counted as another download. wp.org publishes no split between first installs and updates, so we show the raw rate rather than guess at one.
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.
Excellent listing optimization
Most to gain: Rating quality
Updated 27 days ago
Tested up to WordPress 7.1.4, the current branch or newer
3.0★ over 2 reviews, weighted for review count to 4.1★ and held back under 25 reviews
3 of 5 tags set · short description in place
To rank higher: Too few reviews to rank on quality — nudge happy users to leave one.
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.
33
Momentum
Losing ground
-0.2
Velocity
places per keyword, 24d
0%
Breadth
of keywords climbing, 24d
+0.4
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| crossword your tag | #2 | #3 | up 1 |
| word game your tag | #4 | #20 | 0 |
| word puzzle | #8 | #13 | 0 |
| puzzle your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
5 searches this plugin appeared in over the last 90 days, 3 listed. 2 left out as unrelated or noise (years, numbers, stray words). 1 of its tags isn't in the top 24 for their own search.
What to do about it
- “puzzle” isn't earning a slot. You list it, but you're not in the first 24 results for that search. WordPress.org counts only your first five tags, so free the slot for a search you can win.
Daily downloads
Since 14 Dec 2023 · 1,056 days · wp.org + Plugin Pulse archive
30-day downloads
Rolling 30-day volume · peak 298 · peaks are release surges
Directory rank
Ranked about #18,200 to #19,000, alongside the other plugins at 70+ installs. Plugins with the same install count swap places between wp.org requests, so this is where most of them sit. Checked monthly, last on 1 Nov 2026.
Rating trend
Star average over time · dips mark rough releases
Health trend
Composite health score, snapshotted daily
Update activity
Downloads in the last 30 days for every 1,000 active sites.
Not enough installs to measure. This needs at least 100 active sites; below that, a handful of downloads reads as tens of thousands.
Release cadence
Occasionally updatedHow often this plugin actually ships. A steady rhythm is the maintenance signal a single "last updated" date can't show.
3
releases in the last 12 months
27d ago
latest release · v1.2.3 · 8 Oct 2026
12
tagged releases on record
Recent releases
What its installed base runs
via wordpress.orgShare of active installs on each version of this plugin · 84% 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 “70+”. Our estimate pins where the real number sits.
Crossed into this band 6 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 13 Dec 2023
Recent reviews
All reviews on wp.org ↗- ★★★★★ jomo902101.3y ago
Spent 4 hours formatting the crossword and adding words and clues, only to finally publish it to see the puzzle does not show up on the front end of the website. This plugin has ridiculous limitations on the free version, and the pro version is much too expensive for a simple plugin. I went with a simple windows based solutions and had my crossword up in 30 minutes.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ ervaibhav_812.0y ago
This crossword puzzle is easy to set up and user friendly to use. Thanks to Dan for making this superb plugin. I used it in on my website and traffic is growing on and on.
Read on wp.org ↗
Languages
via translate.wordpress.orgTranslated into 1 language, 0 at 90% or more
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.
This plugin’s searches fall outside the topics measured so far. See the topics measured so far.
Readme readiness
4 of 8 pass · checked 30 Oct 2026Can an assistant quote this readme? Eight deterministic checks over the wp.org listing, no model involved.
- ✓ Says what it does "Create a beautiful, responsive 15x15 grid crossword to your liking. You have full control over the blank ce..."
- ! Has a FAQ Only 1 question in the FAQ; 3 or more gives an assistant something to match.
- ! FAQ asks real questions 0 of 1 FAQ entries are headings, not questions ("undefined").
- ! Names who it is for Never says who the plugin is for or what they use it for.
- ! 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 2,147 characters of description.
- ✓ Tags match the text 2 of 3 tags appear in the text; "word game" does not.
Growth timeline
Install-tier crossings we have observed, and how long each tier took to outgrow
- 2026-05-04 90+ → 70+ down after 77 days in tier
- 2026-02-16 100+ → 90+ down after 63 days in tier
- 2025-12-15 90+ → 100+ up after 142 days in tier
- 2025-07-26 100+ → 90+ down after 35 days in tier
- 2025-06-21 90+ → 100+ up after 39 days in tier
- 2025-05-13 80+ → 90+ up after 34 days in tier
- 2025-04-09 70+ → 80+ up after 19 days in tier
- 2025-03-21 60+ → 70+ up after 32 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).
Embed this report card
Drop a live Pulse card for Advanced Crossword into a readme, a review or a deck. It updates itself.
<iframe src="https://plugins.wpmayor.com/embed/advanced-crossword" width="480" height="300" style="border:0" loading="lazy" title="Advanced Crossword — Plugin Pulse"></iframe> Advanced Crossword: 70+ active installs, 3.0★ (2 reviews). Plugin Pulse (WP Mayor), as of 2026-11-04. https://plugins.wpmayor.com/plugin/advanced-crossword
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