Better File Editor
by Bryan Petty · Uncategorized
Also makes 1 other plugin · 320+ installs across the portfolio →
Adds line numbers, syntax highlighting, code folding, and lots more to the theme and plugin editors in the admin panel.
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 48/100
Stale · Likely abandoned
Active installs
300+
≈350 estimated
Momentum
+45%
downloads vs prior 30d
Biggest opportunity: Add “textile” to your wp.org tags. You rank #21 for it without listing it, close enough for a declared tag to move you up. WordPress.org counts only your first five tags, so with 4 listed it's a slot worth spending.
48 health vs 58 average across 25,763 Uncategorized plugins
Install conversion
How it's measured →0.7%
of downloads still active
At least 300 of 41.9K lifetime downloads are still running, in line with its category: the median Uncategorized plugin keeps 0.6%, across 17,773 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.
High removal-risk signals
63/100Maintenance 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 11+ years — the top precursor to removal once a vulnerability is found.
- Compatibility drift. Tested only up to WordPress 4.3.34, well behind 6.8.
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 4033 days ago, past the ~180 days where wp.org starts discounting
Tested up to WordPress 4.3.34; the current branch is 6.8
4.7★ over 17 reviews, smoothed to 4.25★ and held back under 25 reviews
4 of 5 tags set · short description in place
To rank higher: Last updated 4033 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.
31
Momentum
Losing ground
-0.3
Velocity
places per keyword, 12d
0%
Breadth
of keywords climbing, 12d
-0.2
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| textile | #21 | #3 | 0 |
| code your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| editor your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| syntax your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| theme your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
12 searches this plugin appeared in over the last 90 days, 1 listed. 11 left out as unrelated or noise (years, numbers, stray words). 4 of its tags aren't in the top 24 for their own search.
What to do about it
- Add “textile” to your wp.org tags. You rank #21 for it without listing it, close enough for a declared tag to move you up. WordPress.org counts only your first five tags, so with 4 listed it's a slot worth spending.
Daily downloads
Since 5 Oct 2022 · 1,489 days · wp.org + Plugin Pulse archive
30-day downloads
Rolling 30-day volume · peak 127 · peaks are release surges
Directory rank
Ranked about #10,100 to #11,100, alongside the other plugins at 300+ 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
11.0y ago
latest release · v2.3.1 · 18 Oct 2015
8
tagged releases on record
Recent releases
What its installed base runs
via wordpress.orgShare of active installs on each version of this plugin · 88% 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 “300+”. Our estimate pins where the real number sits.
Crossed into this band 7 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 21 Mar 2015
Recent reviews
All reviews on wp.org ↗- ★★★★★ Dragoon9010.0y ago
I like the new editor with custom themes, however there is a bug i am not sure if its because of the new version of WordPress i am using 4.6.1, whenever i try to type or delete text it changes the text that is 6 space before the highlighted actual text that i want to edit, this happens also with the other plugin called “Better Code Editor”, so hopefully this gets fixed in the future. If this bug gets fixed i would rate 5. This topic was modified 9 years, 9 months ago by Dragoon90. This topic was modified 9 years, 9 months ago by Dragoon90.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ ProBusinessCenter10.6y ago
Thank you a lot!
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ rivmanbx11.7y ago
Must have plugin for all those who have child themes and want to modify css or php. I love the color schemes and the simplicity of use. Just install and you’r set. Need some vertically resize or, if not asking too much, the possibility to make it full screen. Thanks author.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ renegaed11.9y ago
simple and it works
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ DareDevil7311.9y ago
Very good!
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ mscwebmaster12.2y ago
The editor is still not vertically resizable. It used to be, but now, not so much. The last time the plugin author responded to this thread was 7 months ago. I gave up and am using an actual code editor – Coda 2 – to modify my CSS and other PHP files. Not a plugin. So much happier.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ MastroPino12.2y ago
Simply Awesome
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ Camilo12.4y ago
A lot cleaner than “Advanced Code Editor”.
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
3 of 8 pass · checked 29 Oct 2026Can an assistant quote this readme? Eight deterministic checks over the wp.org listing, no model involved.
- ✓ Says what it does "Adds line numbers, syntax highlighting, code folding, and lots more to the theme and plugin editors in the..."
- ! 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 3 lists; assistants quote headed sections and bullet lists, not paragraphs.
- ✓ Enough to quote 1,564 characters of description.
- ✓ Tags match the text All 4 tags appear in the text.
Growth timeline
Install-tier crossings we have observed, and how long each tier took to outgrow
- 2026-04-10 400+ → 300+ down after 2 days in tier
- 2026-04-08 300+ → 400+ up after 6 days in tier
- 2026-04-02 400+ → 300+ down after 1 days in tier
- 2026-04-01 300+ → 400+ up after 3 days in tier
- 2026-03-29 400+ → 300+ down after 2 days in tier
- 2026-03-27 300+ → 400+ up after 3 days in tier
- 2026-03-24 400+ → 300+ down after 352 days in tier
- 2025-04-06 500+ → 400+ down after 5 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).
-
Theme Editor 50K+ installs · 4.6★ · 2 shared tags B -
Code Block Pro – Beautiful Syntax Highlighting 10K+ installs · 4.6★ · 2 shared tags A -
Prismatic 2K+ installs · 4.6★ · 2 shared tags A -
CodeColorer 1K+ installs · 4.4★ · 2 shared tags A -
Code Click to Copy 700+ installs · 4.3★ · 2 shared tags C -
Pastacode 400+ installs · 4.5★ · 2 shared tags B
Embed this report card
Drop a live Pulse card for Better File Editor into a readme, a review or a deck. It updates itself.
<iframe src="https://plugins.wpmayor.com/embed/better-file-editor" width="480" height="300" style="border:0" loading="lazy" title="Better File Editor — Plugin Pulse"></iframe> Better File Editor: 300+ active installs, 4.7★ (17 reviews). Plugin Pulse (WP Mayor), as of 2026-11-02. https://plugins.wpmayor.com/plugin/better-file-editor
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