Collapsed Archives
by Matthew Petroff · Uncategorized
Also makes 1 other plugin · 1K+ installs across the portfolio →
Adds a widget to display archive links using purely CSS-based collapsing.
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 · Few reviews
Active installs
1K+
≈1.9K estimated
Momentum
+45%
downloads vs prior 30d
Biggest opportunity: “archives”, “collapsed” and “collapsing” 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.
48 health vs 58 average across 25,735 Uncategorized plugins
Install conversion
How it's measured →7.4%
of downloads still active
At least 1K of 13.4K lifetime downloads are still running, above its category: the median Uncategorized plugin keeps 0.6%, across 17,764 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.
Removal-risk signals
53/100Maintenance 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 5+ years — the top precursor to removal once a vulnerability is found.
- Falling behind WordPress. Tested up to WordPress 5.7.0.
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 2037 days ago, past the ~180 days where wp.org starts discounting
Tested up to WordPress 5.7.0; the current branch is 6.8
5.0★ over 7 reviews, smoothed to 4.21★ and held back under 25 reviews
4 of 5 tags set · short description in place
To rank higher: Last updated 2037 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| archives your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| collapsed your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| collapsing your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| css your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
0 searches this plugin appeared in over the last 90 days. 4 of its tags aren't in the top 24 for their own search.
What to do about it
- “archives”, “collapsed” and “collapsing” 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 · 1,488 days · wp.org + Plugin Pulse archive
30-day downloads
Rolling 30-day volume · peak 439 · 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
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.
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
5.6y ago
latest release · v1.6 · 3 Apr 2021
7
tagged releases on record
Recent releases
What its installed base runs
via wordpress.orgShare of active installs on each version of this plugin · 93% 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 “1K+”. Our estimate pins where the real number sits.
Crossed into this band 6.9 years ago; the previous band took 4.1 years to cross, which places it about 90% of the way through.
Install history since 22 May 2015
Recent reviews
All reviews on wp.org ↗- ★★★★★ phixate5.8y ago
Has all the options I needed to achieve a Blogger-style treeview archive. I’m sure with some CSS I’ll be able to style it however I want in the future. Great work!
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ lesuave7.5y ago
Awesome. And it’s just css. This topic was modified 7 years, 2 months ago by lesuave.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ 50satoshi8.3y ago
Works great, thanks a lot. One thing though, somehow within my theme the alignment to the left didn’t work out. margin-left: 0 !important; wasn’t enough, it seems. I fixed it by adding padding-left: 0! important; to .collapsed-archives > ul { } Also made a modification to add a fade/transition effect to the dropdown. For those interested it’s just some addition the last few lines of code: /* Toggled content */ .collapsed-archives input ~ ul { display: inline-block; opacity: 0; transition: opacity 0s linear 0s; -webkit-transition: opacity 0s linear 0s; } .collapsed-archives input:checked ~ ul { opacity: 1; display: block; transition: opacity 0.5s linear 0s; -webkit-transition: opacity 0.5s linear 0s; }
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ wongm9.8y ago
Does exactly what the description says, and super easy to install – just drag and drop the Widget. No PHP or HTML changes to your theme!
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ Anonymous User10.6y ago
Perfect, thank you for this wonderful plugin. Works a charm and looks the neatest!
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ Piotr11.5y ago
After upgrading WordPress I had some problems with the plugin I used previously (Collapsing Archives), so I started looking for an alternative and found Collapsed Archives. Works like a charm and is more lightweight than the other one. It won’t work on IE8 but who cares… Thank you!
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ Bliss711.5y ago
Works without any problems on several sites that I used them so far. And thanks to this plugin, it managed to roll up my archives so that my sites look neater and tidier. Good job!
Read on wp.org ↗
Behavioral tests
via WP HiveAutomated install-time checks, tested on PHP 7.4.8 · WP 5.7
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 28 Oct 2026Can an assistant quote this readme? Eight deterministic checks over the wp.org listing, no model involved.
- ✓ Says what it does "Adds a widget to display archive links using purely CSS-based collapsing."
- ! 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 8 headings and 8 lists.
- ! Enough to quote 880 characters of description; under 1,000 there is little to quote.
- ✓ Tags match the text 3 of 4 tags appear in the text; "archives" does not.
Growth timeline
Install-tier crossings we have observed, and how long each tier took to outgrow
- 2019-12-10 100+ → 1K+ up after 1499 days in tier
- 2015-11-02 60+ → 100+ up
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).
-
WPCode – Insert Headers and Footers + Custom Code Snippets – WordPress Code Manager 3M+ installs · 4.9★ · 1 shared tag A -
Simple Custom CSS Plugin 100K+ installs · 4.7★ · 1 shared tag C -
Blocks Animation: CSS Animations for Gutenberg Blocks 90K+ installs · 4.6★ · 1 shared tag A -
Widget CSS Classes 80K+ installs · 4.8★ · 1 shared tag C -
Simple CSS 80K+ installs · 4.8★ · 1 shared tag B -
WP Add Custom CSS 60K+ installs · 4.7★ · 1 shared tag B
Embed this report card
Drop a live Pulse card for Collapsed Archives into a readme, a review or a deck. It updates itself.
<iframe src="https://plugins.wpmayor.com/embed/collapsed-archives" width="480" height="300" style="border:0" loading="lazy" title="Collapsed Archives — Plugin Pulse"></iframe> Collapsed Archives: 1K+ active installs, 5.0★ (7 reviews). Plugin Pulse (WP Mayor), as of 2026-10-31. https://plugins.wpmayor.com/plugin/collapsed-archives
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