Author Avatars List/Block
by Paul Bearne · Blocks
Also makes 5 other plugins · 5K+ installs across the portfolio →
Display lists of user avatars using widgets or shortcodes. With Gutenberg support.
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 84/100
Open vulnerability
Active installs
4K+
≈4.5K estimated
Momentum
+8%
downloads vs prior 30d
Biggest opportunity: Swap “block” and “image” for “lists” and “list”. “block” isn't earning its slot: you're not in the first 24 results for its own search. “lists” sits at #15 untagged, close enough for a declared tag to move it up. “image” isn't earning its slot: you're not in the first 24 results for its own search. “list” sits at #19 untagged, close enough for a declared tag to move it up. All five slots are taken, so one has to go.
84 health vs 71 average across 2,523 Blocks plugins
Install conversion
How it's measured →1.0%
of downloads still active
At least 4K of 392K lifetime downloads are still running, below its category: the median Blocks plugin keeps 2.1%, across 1,579 plugins.
Downloads count every update, not just first installs, so older and more frequently released plugins read lower. Compare against other Blocks 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 6 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
Well tuned across the board
Updated 85 days ago
Tested up to WordPress 7.1.0, the current branch or newer
4.8★ over 32 reviews, smoothed to 4.37★
5 of 5 tags set · short description in place
1 of 1 support threads resolved in the last 2 months
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.
35
Momentum
Losing ground
-0.3
Velocity
places per keyword, 28d
10%
Breadth
of keywords climbing, 28d
+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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| avatars | #2 | #2 | 0 |
| list block | #3 | #3 | 0 |
| author your tag | #6 | #5 | up 3 |
| avatars plugin | #2 | #3 | 0 |
| new avatars | #2 | #2 | 0 |
| avatar your tag | #7 | #7 | 0 |
| advance list block | #3 | #2 | — |
| author block | #4 | #5 | down 1 |
| author list | #4 | #5 | 0 |
| post author block | #6 | #8 | up 2 |
| lists | #15 | #19 | up 5 |
| image author | #7 | #10 | 0 |
| author by | #7 | #7 | 0 |
| display author | #7 | #7 | 0 |
| author image | #7 | #10 | 0 |
| author profile widget | #7 | #9 | 0 |
| list | #19 | #17 | 0 |
| author page | #8 | #9 | 0 |
| page author | #8 | #10 | — |
| plugin author | #9 | #14 | up 1 |
| block your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| image your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| profile your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
137 searches this plugin appeared in over the last 90 days, 20 listed. 102 left out as unrelated or noise (years, numbers, stray words). 3 of its tags aren't in the top 24 for their own search.
What to do about it
- Swap “block” and “image” for “lists” and “list”. “block” isn't earning its slot: you're not in the first 24 results for its own search. “lists” sits at #15 untagged, close enough for a declared tag to move it up. “image” isn't earning its slot: you're not in the first 24 results for its own search. “list” sits at #19 untagged, close enough for a declared tag to move it up. All five slots are taken, so one has to go.
Daily downloads
Since 5 Oct 2022 · 1,488 days · wp.org + Plugin Pulse archive
30-day downloads
Rolling 30-day volume · peak 7.1K · 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
Actively maintainedHow often this plugin actually ships. A steady rhythm is the maintenance signal a single "last updated" date can't show.
6
releases in the last 12 months
3mo ago
latest release · v2.2.0 · 7 Aug 2026
82
tagged releases on record
Recent releases
What its installed base runs
via wordpress.orgShare of active installs on each version of this plugin. 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 “4K+”. Our estimate pins where the real number sits.
Crossed into this band 9 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 10 Mar 2016
Latest updates
via wp.org changelogRecent releases and news for this plugin
- — Version 2.1.25 2.1.24 Addjusted where the late escaping happened for the background-color Fix issue with the border in the block Added radius control for avatar in the block 2.1.23 Addjusted where the late escaping happened for the ava 2.1.25
- — Version 2.1.22 2.1.22
- — Version 2.1.21 2.1.21
- — Version 2.1.20 2.1.19 2.1.18 Fixed an additional input reported by Ngô Thiên An (ancorn_) 2.1.17 Fixed lack of escaping on the shortcode reported by Ngô Thiên An (ancorn_) 2.1.20
- — Version 2.1.16 2.1.15 “wp-editor” script should not be enqueued notice fixed 2.1.16
- — Version 2.1.14 2.1.14
Security history
via Wordfence Intelligence1 open vulnerability affects the current version (2.2.0). 3 of 4 disclosed are patched.
- Patched Medium · 6.4 Author Avatars List/Block <= 2.1.23 - Authenticated (Contributor+) Stored Cross-Site Scripting ↗2025-01-07 CVE-2025-22804 Improper Neutralization of Input During Web Page Generation Affects <= 2.1.23 Patched in 2.1.24
- Patched Medium · 6.4 Author Avatars List/Block <= 2.1.21 - Authenticated (Subscriber+) Stored Cross-Site Scripting ↗2024-09-30 CVE-2024-47370 Improper Neutralization of Input During Web Page Generation Affects <= 2.1.21 Patched in 2.1.22
- Patched Medium · 6.4 Author Avatars List/Block <= 2.1.17 - Authenticated (Contributor+) Stored Cross-Site Scripting via Shortcode ↗2023-12-06 CVE-2023-49846 Improper Neutralization of Input During Web Page Generation Affects <= 2.1.17 Patched in 2.1.18
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 8.1.12 · WP 7.0.1
Languages
via translate.wordpress.orgTranslated into 75 languages, 5 at 90% or more
Plus 51 more locales with partial translations.
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
6 of 8 pass · checked 26 Oct 2026Can an assistant quote this readme? Eight deterministic checks over the wp.org listing, no model involved.
- ✓ Says what it does "Display lists of user avatars using widgets or shortcodes. With Gutenberg support."
- ✓ Has a FAQ 6 questions in the FAQ.
- ✓ FAQ asks real questions 6 of 6 read like questions a user would type.
- ! Names who it is for One audience phrase ("great for"); say who the plugin is for and what they use it for.
- ✓ Names what it works with Mentions Gutenberg, bbPress, BuddyPress, Multisite.
- ! Headings and lists 0 headings and 2 lists; assistants quote headed sections and bullet lists, not paragraphs.
- ✓ Enough to quote 2,142 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
- 2026-01-25 5K+ → 4K+ down after 325 days in tier
- 2025-03-06 6K+ → 5K+ down after 330 days in tier
- 2024-04-10 7K+ → 6K+ down after 1 days in tier
- 2024-04-09 6K+ → 7K+ up after 2 days in tier
- 2024-04-07 7K+ → 6K+ down after 4 days in tier
- 2024-04-03 6K+ → 7K+ up after 1 days in tier
- 2024-04-02 7K+ → 6K+ down after 270 days in tier
- 2023-07-07 8K+ → 7K+ down after 179 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).
-
Meks Smart Author Widget 10K+ installs · 4.1★ · 3 shared tags C -
Simple Local Avatars 100K+ installs · 4.5★ · 2 shared tags A -
Gravatar Enhanced – Avatars, Profiles, and Privacy 100K+ installs · 4.1★ · 2 shared tags A -
One User Avatar | User Profile Picture 100K+ installs · 4.5★ · 2 shared tags A -
Lightbox for Gallery & Image Block 20K+ installs · 4.9★ · 2 shared tags A -
Basic User Avatars 20K+ installs · 4.5★ · 2 shared tags C
Embed this report card
Drop a live Pulse card for Author Avatars List/Block into a readme, a review or a deck. It updates itself.
<iframe src="https://plugins.wpmayor.com/embed/author-avatars" width="480" height="300" style="border:0" loading="lazy" title="Author Avatars List/Block — Plugin Pulse"></iframe> Author Avatars List/Block: 4K+ active installs, 4.8★ (32 reviews). Plugin Pulse (WP Mayor), as of 2026-10-31. https://plugins.wpmayor.com/plugin/author-avatars
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