BlackSwan | Block External Request
by BlackSwanDev · Performance
Block unwanted external HTTP requests in WordPress. Blacklist/whitelist management, resource blocking, and one-click pause.
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 77/100
Few reviews
Active installs
40+
≈41 estimated
Momentum
+20%
downloads vs prior 30d
Biggest opportunity: “blacklist”, “block http requests” and “performance” 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.
77 health vs 69 average across 1,807 Performance plugins
Install conversion
How it's measured →1.9%
of downloads still active
At least 40 of 2.1K lifetime downloads are still running, above its category: the median Performance plugin keeps 1.4%, across 1,100 plugins.
Downloads count every update, not just first installs, so older and more frequently released plugins read lower. Compare against other Performance 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 9 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 201 days ago, past the ~180 days where wp.org starts discounting
Tested up to WordPress 6.8.12, the current branch or newer
5.0★ over 1 review, smoothed to 4.12★ and held back under 25 reviews
5 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
-0.6
Velocity
places per keyword, 18d
8%
Breadth
of keywords climbing, 18d
-0.3
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| external request | #6 | #22 | 0 |
| external requests your tag | #9 | #21 | 0 |
| http request | #22 | #24 | 0 |
| blacklist your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| block http requests your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| performance your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| whitelist your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
13 searches this plugin appeared in over the last 90 days, 3 listed. 10 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
- “blacklist”, “block http requests” and “performance” 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 29 Oct 2022 · 1,463 days · wp.org + Plugin Pulse archive
30-day downloads
Rolling 30-day volume · peak 335 · peaks are release surges
Directory rank
Ranked about #21,400 to #22,800, alongside the other plugins at 40+ 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 21 Oct 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
Actively maintainedHow often this plugin actually ships. A steady rhythm is the maintenance signal a single "last updated" date can't show.
9
releases in the last 12 months
7mo ago
latest release · v2.9.3 · 13 Apr 2026
9
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 “40+”. Our estimate pins where the real number sits.
Crossed into this band 35 days ago and a band this size takes about a year or more to cross, so the real count is still just over 40.
At the current install trend, crossing 50+ in roughly 77 days.
Install history since 28 Oct 2022
Behavioral tests
via WP HiveAutomated install-time checks, tested on PHP 8.1.12 · WP 7.0
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
7 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 "Block unwanted external HTTP requests in WordPress. Blacklist/whitelist management, resource blocking, and..."
- ✓ Has a FAQ 7 questions in the FAQ.
- ✓ FAQ asks real questions 7 of 7 read like questions a user would type.
- ✓ Names who it is for Names its audience or use cases ("perfect for", "who wants", "for developers").
- ! Names what it works with Names no plugin, service or platform it works with.
- ✓ Headings and lists 6 headings and 3 lists.
- ✓ Enough to quote 5,011 characters of description.
- ✓ Tags match the text 3 of 5 tags appear in the text; "block http requests", "external requests" do not.
Growth timeline
Install-tier crossings we have observed, and how long each tier took to outgrow
- 2026-09-26 30+ → 40+ up after 50 days in tier
- 2026-08-07 40+ → 30+ down after 44 days in tier
- 2026-06-24 50+ → 40+ down after 5 days in tier
- 2026-06-19 40+ → 50+ up after 14 days in tier
- 2026-06-05 30+ → 40+ up after 13 days in tier
- 2026-05-23 20+ → 30+ up after 4 days in tier
- 2026-05-19 10+ → 20+ up after 322 days in tier
- 2025-07-01 20+ → 10+ down after 2 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).
-
CM E-Mail Blacklist – Simple email filtering for safer registration 800+ installs · 4.1★ · 2 shared tags A - U User Domain Whitelist 300+ installs · 4.0★ · 2 shared tags D
- G Gatekeeper 200+ installs · 3.9★ · 2 shared tags D
-
LiteSpeed Cache 7M+ installs · 4.8★ · 1 shared tag B -
WP Super Cache 1M+ installs · 4.3★ · 1 shared tag A -
Speed Optimizer – The All-In-One Performance-Boosting Plugin 1M+ installs · 4.1★ · 1 shared tag A
Embed this report card
Drop a live Pulse card for BlackSwan | Block External Request into a readme, a review or a deck. It updates itself.
<iframe src="https://plugins.wpmayor.com/embed/blackswan-block-external-request" width="480" height="300" style="border:0" loading="lazy" title="BlackSwan | Block External Request — Plugin Pulse"></iframe> BlackSwan | Block External Request: 40+ active installs, 5.0★ (1 reviews). Plugin Pulse (WP Mayor), as of 2026-10-31. https://plugins.wpmayor.com/plugin/blackswan-block-external-request
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