Category Featured Images Extended
by CK MacLeod · Uncategorized
Also makes 1 other plugin · 410+ installs across the portfolio →
Set images for categories and tags, especially for fallback post thumbnails or featured images.
46 health vs 56 average across 16,376 Uncategorized plugins
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 8+ years — the top precursor to removal once a vulnerability is found.
- Compatibility drift. Tested only up to WordPress 4.8.30, well behind 6.8.
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
Biggest win: Update recency
To rank higher: Last updated 3278 days ago — ship an update; wp.org decays a listing's search weight after ~180 days.
Get the full rank-higher report →Daily downloads
Since 2022-10-05 · 1,425 days · wp.org + Plugin Pulse archive
30-day downloads
Rolling 30-day volume · peaks are release surges
154
now · peak 226
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
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.
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 “400+”. Our estimate pins where the real number sits.
Refined from the date this plugin crossed into its current band.
Install history · since 2018-01-27 · 1,424 observations
Estimated value
What this plugin might earn a year, and what it might sell for. Modeled from public signals; we don't see anyone's books.
Est. annual revenue
Est. acquisition value
No paid tier is visible, so we don't put a figure on revenue or sale value: that would be guessing. The install base is a real asset to an acquirer, just not one public data lets us price. A small install base leaves thin data to model from.
Details
Recent reviews
All reviews on wp.org ↗- ★★★★★ puzzlella8.2y ago
An EXCELLENT plugin that you would normally expect to have a fee for. Great work, great support. Makes it easy to add featured images by category or by tag, so your site looks professional with just a few steps. Nice.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ GratefulDeb9.3y ago
Working on a project that has hero images and this is EXACTLY what I was looking for to implement a featured image on a category and it’s posts. Save me SO MUCH TIME!
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ goodyis9.4y ago
Super helpful when you have a lot of posts that have no featured image and you need them quick to fix the look and feel of your theme – especially if theme has photo focus. Plugin does what is expected; support was helpful even when the problem I had, had nothing to do with the plugin – but rather my theme/setup. Knowledgeable creator; un-bloated code.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ michent19.7y ago
After posting a minor php error notification in the support foums (that did not affect installation or functionality) plugin developer responded immediately & issued an update with a patch in 24 hrs. That’s the kind of attentiveness I look for in a developer when choosing plugin integrations for the sites I build. Great job!
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ wptechnology9.7y ago
Unable to install the plugin, getting this error : Fatal error: Can’t use function return value in write context in /wp-content/plugins/category-featured-images-extended/category-featured-images-extended.php on line 730
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ uktar9.9y ago
Exactly what I was looking for and the developer is reactive ! Great work !
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ Lu Is9.9y ago
Works like a charm!
Read on wp.org ↗
Known vulnerabilities
via Wordfence Intelligence1 disclosed vulnerability on record for this plugin, 1 still affects the current version.
- Medium · 6.4 Category Featured Images Extended <= 1.52 - Authenticated (Author+) Stored Cross-Site Scripting ↗2025-09-22 CVE-2025-57920 Improper Neutralization of Input During Web Page Generation ('Cross-site Scripting') Affects <= 1.52 No patch available
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 7.2.16 · WP 5.2.4
Growth timeline
Install-tier crossings we have observed, and how long each tier took to outgrow
- 2026-05-22 500+ → 400+ down after 538 days in tier
- 2024-11-30 600+ → 500+ down after 326 days in tier
- 2024-01-09 700+ → 600+ down after 1 days in tier
- 2024-01-08 600+ → 700+ up after 2 days in tier
- 2024-01-06 700+ → 600+ down after 4 days in tier
- 2024-01-02 600+ → 700+ up after 4 days in tier
- 2023-12-29 700+ → 600+ down after 1 days in tier
- 2023-12-28 600+ → 700+ up 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).
-
Freundschaft Default Featured Images 100+ installs · 3.6★ · 3 shared tags B -
Conditionally display featured image on singular posts and pages 30K+ installs · 4.6★ · 2 shared tags A -
XO Featured Image Tools 30K+ installs · 4.4★ · 2 shared tags B -
Manual Image Crop 8K+ installs · 4.1★ · 2 shared tags B - E Easy Add Thumbnail 7K+ installs · 4.4★ · 2 shared tags D
-
Generate Images (AI) – Magic Post Thumbnail 5K+ installs · 4.2★ · 2 shared tags A
Embed this report card
Drop a live Pulse card for Category Featured Images Extended into a readme, a review or a deck. It updates itself.
<iframe src="https://plugins.wpmayor.com/embed/category-featured-images-extended" width="480" height="300" style="border:0" loading="lazy" title="Category Featured Images Extended — Plugin Pulse"></iframe> Category Featured Images Extended: 400+ active installs, 4.4★ (7 reviews). Plugin Pulse (WP Mayor), as of 2026-08-29. https://plugins.wpmayor.com/plugin/category-featured-images-extended