Backdrop
by Phillip.Gooch · Uncategorized
Also makes 3 other plugins · 530+ installs across the portfolio →
Backdrop is an improved site background customizer allowing for all manner of fancy things.
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 58/100
Stale · Few reviews
Active installs
20+
≈22 estimated
Momentum
0%
low volume, under 1,000 downloads a month
Biggest opportunity: “background”, “customization” and “themes” 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.
Install conversion
How it's measured →0.2%
of downloads still active
At least 20 of 8.4K lifetime downloads are still running, below 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.
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.
Room to improve
Most to gain: Update recency
Updated 617 days ago, past the ~180 days where wp.org starts discounting
Tested up to WordPress 6.7.11; the current branch is 7.1
5.0★ over 3 reviews, weighted for review count to 4.2★ and held back under 25 reviews
3 of 5 tags set · short description in place
To rank higher: Last updated 617 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| background your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| customization your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| themes your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
2 searches this plugin appeared in over the last 90 days, 0 listed. 2 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
- “background”, “customization” and “themes” 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 · 1,492 days · wp.org + Plugin Pulse archive
30-day downloads
Rolling 30-day volume · peak 96 · peaks are release surges
Directory rank
Ranked about #25,400 to #28,300, alongside the other plugins at 20+ 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.
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
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
1.7y ago
latest release · v2.3.5 · 25 Feb 2025
16
tagged releases on record
Recent releases
What its installed base runs
via wordpress.orgShare of active installs on each version of this plugin · 100% 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 “20+”. Our estimate pins where the real number sits.
Crossed into this band 2 months ago and a band this size takes about a year or more to cross, so the real count is still just over 20.
At the current install trend, crossing 30+ in roughly 155 days.
Install history since 16 Oct 2015
Recent reviews
All reviews on wp.org ↗- ★★★★★ omnix3211.6y ago
Tried this plugin out and works great. I had an issue where it was not working by turning on Advanced mode and wrote the author who helped me get things sorted right away. Most of the other background changer plugins have not been updated in awhile and a few I tried caused issues with no help from the authors. This Plugin is pretty awesome. Most definitively give it a try. Mike and Carol.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ vaid00011.7y ago
Wonderful support – I’m really impressed. I had some issues because of the theme I’m using: backdrop and the theme had some conflict concerning the background image. I wrote and email to Phillip and wow: he fixed it for me. Thanks a lot! Five stars at least. By the way: all other backdrop functions are working fine. And there are some features in the backend that aren’t documented in the description: use dual backgrounds, color picker and stuff like this. Cool.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ armandh13.2y ago
its ok
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.
This plugin’s searches fall outside the topics measured so far. See the topics measured so far.
Readme readiness
2 of 8 pass · checked 2 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 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 Names its audience or use cases ("built for", "if you want").
- ! 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 1,282 characters of description.
- ! Tags match the text Only 1 of 3 tags appear in the text ("customization", "themes" missing).
Growth timeline
Install-tier crossings we have observed, and how long each tier took to outgrow
- 2026-08-31 10+ → 20+ up after 114 days in tier
- 2026-05-09 20+ → 10+ down after 237 days in tier
- 2025-09-14 30+ → 20+ down after 594 days in tier
- 2024-01-29 40+ → 30+ down after 36 days in tier
- 2023-12-24 50+ → 40+ down after 149 days in tier
- 2023-07-28 60+ → 50+ down after 188 days in tier
- 2023-01-21 70+ → 60+ down after 36 days in tier
- 2022-12-16 60+ → 70+ up after 51 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 Backdrop into a readme, a review or a deck. It updates itself.
<iframe src="https://plugins.wpmayor.com/embed/backdrop" width="480" height="300" style="border:0" loading="lazy" title="Backdrop — Plugin Pulse"></iframe> Backdrop: 20+ active installs, 5.0★ (3 reviews). Plugin Pulse (WP Mayor), as of 2026-11-04. https://plugins.wpmayor.com/plugin/backdrop
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