Category Featured Images Extended
by CK MacLeod · Uncategorized
Also makes 4 other plugins · 430+ installs across the portfolio →
Set images for categories and tags, especially for fallback post thumbnails or featured images.
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 49/100
Stale · Likely abandoned · Few reviews · Open vulnerability
Active installs
400+
≈470 estimated
Momentum
-4%
low volume, under 1,000 downloads a month
Biggest opportunity: “categories”, “category featured image” and “featured image” 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 →3.7%
of downloads still active
At least 400 of 10.9K lifetime downloads are still running, above its category: the median Uncategorized plugin keeps 0.6%, across 17,786 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 9+ years — the top precursor to removal once a vulnerability is found.
- Compatibility drift. Tested only up to WordPress 4.8.34, well behind 7.1.
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 3344 days ago, past the ~180 days where wp.org starts discounting
Tested up to WordPress 4.8.34; the current branch is 7.1
4.4★ over 7 reviews, weighted for review count to 4.1★ and held back under 25 reviews
5 of 5 tags set · short description in place
To rank higher: Last updated 3344 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.
33
Momentum
Mixed: one swing, the rest drifting
0.0
Velocity
places per keyword, 16d
0%
Breadth
of keywords climbing, 16d
0.0
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| ck macleod your tag | #1 | #1 | 0 |
| categories your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| category featured image your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| featured image your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| thumbnail your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
3 searches this plugin appeared in over the last 90 days, 1 listed. 2 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
- “categories”, “category featured image” and “featured image” 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 · 1,491 days · wp.org + Plugin Pulse archive
30-day downloads
Rolling 30-day volume · peak 226 · peaks are release surges
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
Health trend
Composite health score, snapshotted daily
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.
Crossed into this band 6 months ago; the previous band took 18 months to cross, which places it about 69% of the way through.
Install history since 27 Jan 2018
Recent reviews
All reviews on wp.org ↗- ★★★★★ puzzlella8.4y 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 ↗ - ★★★★★ GratefulDeb9.5y 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 ↗ - ★★★★★ goodyis9.6y 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 ↗ - ★★★★★ michent19.9y 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 ↗ - ★★★★★ wptechnology9.9y 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 ↗ - ★★★★★ uktar10.1y ago
Exactly what I was looking for and the developer is reactive ! Great work !
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ Lu Is10.1y ago
Works like a charm!
Read on wp.org ↗
Security history
via Wordfence Intelligence1 open vulnerability affects the current version (1.52). 0 of 1 disclosed are patched.
- Open 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 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.
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
6 of 8 pass · checked 31 Oct 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 3 questions in the FAQ.
- ✓ FAQ asks real questions 2 of 3 read like questions a user would type.
- ! Names who it is for Never says who the plugin is for or what they use it for.
- ✓ Names what it works with Mentions Yoast, PayPal.
- ✓ Headings and lists 3 headings and 3 lists.
- ✓ Enough to quote 3,921 characters of description.
- ✓ Tags match the text 4 of 5 tags appear in the text; "CK MacLeod" does not.
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 216 days in tier
- 2023-06-07 800+ → 700+ down after 246 days in tier
- 2022-10-04 900+ → 800+ down
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 -
Conditionally display featured image on singular posts and pages 30K+ installs · 4.6★ · 2 shared tags B -
XO Featured Image Tools 20K+ installs · 4.4★ · 2 shared tags B -
Manual Image Crop 7K+ 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 2026-11-03. https://plugins.wpmayor.com/plugin/category-featured-images-extended
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