Auto Approve Comments
by Federico Andrioli · Security
Also makes 1 other plugin · 400+ installs across the portfolio →
Auto approve comments by Commenter (email, name, url), User and Role (Akismet and wpDiscuz compatible)
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
D 42/100
Stale · Likely abandoned · Few reviews
Active installs
100+
≈200 estimated
Momentum
+11%
downloads vs prior 30d
Biggest opportunity: “anti spam”, “auto approve” and “comments” 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.
42 health vs 66 average across 1,776 Security plugins
Install conversion
How it's measured →0.9%
of downloads still active
At least 100 of 10.6K lifetime downloads are still running, below its category: the median Security plugin keeps 1.4%, across 1,061 plugins.
Downloads count every update, not just first installs, so older and more frequently released plugins read lower. Compare against other Security plugins, not across the directory. wp.org reports active installs as the bottom of a band, so the real rate is this or higher.
Removal-risk signals
53/100Maintenance and integrity signals that tend to precede a WordPress.org removal. Not an official status, a heads-up to act.
- Long abandoned. No update in 5+ years — the top precursor to removal once a vulnerability is found.
- Falling behind WordPress. Tested up to WordPress 5.8.19.
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.
Under-optimized
Most to gain: Update recency
Updated 1965 days ago, past the ~180 days where wp.org starts discounting
Tested up to WordPress 5.8.19; the current branch is 6.8
3.2★ over 5 reviews, smoothed to 4.02★ and held back under 25 reviews
4 of 5 tags set · short description in place
To rank higher: Last updated 1965 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.
Not enough tracked days yet to call a direction. Momentum needs at least three keywords measured a week or more apart.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| anti spam your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| auto approve your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| comments your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| moderation your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
0 searches this plugin appeared in over the last 90 days. 4 of its tags aren't in the top 24 for their own search.
What to do about it
- “anti spam”, “auto approve” and “comments” 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 · 1,489 days · wp.org + Plugin Pulse archive
30-day downloads
Rolling 30-day volume · peak 103 · peaks are release surges
Directory rank
Ranked about #13,300 to #16,400, alongside the other plugins at 100+ 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
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
5.4y ago
latest release · v2.8 · 15 Jun 2021
8
tagged releases on record
Recent releases
What its installed base runs
via wordpress.orgShare of active installs on each version of this plugin · 91% 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 “100+”. Our estimate pins where the real number sits.
Crossed into this band 2 days ago and the previous band took 16 months to cross, so the real count is still just under 200.
Install history since 1 Apr 2016
Recent reviews
All reviews on wp.org ↗- ★★★★★ aptharsia6.8y ago
Doesn’t work all the time. This topic was modified 6 years, 5 months ago by aptharsia.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ lestado7.1y ago
Selecting users to be auto approved for comments is not the same as AUTO APPROVING ALL COMMENTS. I feel like the name of this plugin is deceptive. WordPress already has the option to auto approve anyone who’s had 1 post approved and I think this plugin basically does the same thing.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ patprov8.4y ago
Tout est dans le titre fonctionne avec WP 4.9.6 Je vous lais que les membres de mon association aient leurs commentaires auto-approuvés et contrôler les autres, il rempli parfaitement son rôle. Si plusieurs roles sont prédéfini, bien mettre le rôle et l’identifiaint ou l’adresse mail.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ Eric Armstrong9.4y ago
With WordPress 4.75, the options to select users and roles do not working. Clicking on the tabs does nothing. Prior to that, I selected myself as the user, and still had to approve every cross-link as a user. Just took my site public, and for some reason I’m not seeing any cross-links at all as comments. (Probably has nothing to do with the plugin. There must be a setting that changed somewhere.) There is no support tab for this plugin, so I’m forced to put these comments into a review — otherwise, I would have sent in the bug reports first. It’s a great idea, though. And was working after a fashion before the WordPress upgrade, so there is still hope for it. Will revise this review as conditions warrant.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ umairgull9.6y ago
Developer did great work
Read on wp.org ↗
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
2 of 8 pass · checked 1 Nov 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 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 0 headings and 1 list; assistants quote headed sections and bullet lists, not paragraphs.
- ✓ Enough to quote 1,196 characters of description.
- ✓ Tags match the text 2 of 4 tags appear in the text; "anti-spam", "moderation" do not.
Growth timeline
Install-tier crossings we have observed, and how long each tier took to outgrow
- 2026-10-30 200+ → 100+ down after 479 days in tier
- 2025-07-08 300+ → 200+ down after 2 days in tier
- 2025-07-06 200+ → 300+ up after 6 days in tier
- 2025-06-30 300+ → 200+ down after 1 days in tier
- 2025-06-29 200+ → 300+ up after 2 days in tier
- 2025-06-27 300+ → 200+ down after 17 days in tier
- 2025-06-10 200+ → 300+ up after 4 days in tier
- 2025-06-06 300+ → 200+ down after 1 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).
-
Akismet Anti-spam: Spam Protection 5M+ installs · 4.7★ · 2 shared tags A -
Antispam Bee 700K+ installs · 4.8★ · 2 shared tags A -
Anti-Spam, Spam FireWall by CleanTalk 200K+ installs · 4.8★ · 2 shared tags A -
Comment Link Remove and Other Comment Tools 8K+ installs · 4.0★ · 2 shared tags A -
Spam Destroyer 5K+ installs · 4.5★ · 2 shared tags B -
La Sentinelle antispam 3K+ installs · 4.6★ · 2 shared tags A
Embed this report card
Drop a live Pulse card for Auto Approve Comments into a readme, a review or a deck. It updates itself.
<iframe src="https://plugins.wpmayor.com/embed/auto-approve-comments" width="480" height="300" style="border:0" loading="lazy" title="Auto Approve Comments — Plugin Pulse"></iframe> Auto Approve Comments: 100+ active installs, 3.2★ (5 reviews). Plugin Pulse (WP Mayor), as of 2026-11-01. https://plugins.wpmayor.com/plugin/auto-approve-comments
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