Configure SMTP
by Scott Reilly · Email & Marketing
Also makes 64 other plugins · 78.4K+ installs across the portfolio →
Configure SMTP mailing in WordPress, including support for sending email via SSL/TLS (such as Gmail).
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
C 64/100
Stale · Likely abandoned
Active installs
6K+
≈6.5K estimated
Momentum
+11%
downloads vs prior 30d
Biggest opportunity: “email”, “gmail” and “phpmailer” 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.
64 health vs 66 average across 2,122 Email & Marketing plugins
Install conversion
How it's measured →1.6%
of downloads still active
At least 6K of 373.5K lifetime downloads are still running, above its category: the median Email & Marketing plugin keeps 0.9%, across 1,295 plugins.
Downloads count every update, not just first installs, so older and more frequently released plugins read lower. Compare against other Email & Marketing 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
28/100Maintenance and integrity signals that tend to precede a WordPress.org removal. Not an official status, a heads-up to act.
- Not actively maintained. No update in about 2 years.
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.
Well optimized
Most to gain: Update recency
Updated 832 days ago, past the ~180 days where wp.org starts discounting
Tested up to WordPress 6.5.14; the current branch is 6.8
4.9★ over 45 reviews, smoothed to 4.48★
5 of 5 tags set · short description in place
To rank higher: Last updated 832 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.
30
Momentum
Losing ground
-0.8
Velocity
places per keyword, 25d
0%
Breadth
of keywords climbing, 25d
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| coffee2code your tag | #10 | #6 | 0 |
| email your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| gmail your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| phpmailer your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| smtp your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
5 searches this plugin appeared in over the last 90 days, 1 listed. 4 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
- “email”, “gmail” and “phpmailer” 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 · 1,489 days · wp.org + Plugin Pulse archive
30-day downloads
Rolling 30-day volume · peak 2.8K · 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.
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
2.3y ago
latest release · v3.5 · 22 Jul 2024
7
tagged releases on record
Recent releases
What its installed base runs
via wordpress.orgShare of active installs on each version of this plugin · 41% 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 “6K+”. Our estimate pins where the real number sits.
Crossed into this band 6 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 4 Mar 2017
Latest updates
via wp.org changelogRecent releases and news for this plugin
- 2016-11-14 Version 3.2 New: Add unit tests. Change: Handle ‘Send email via Gmail?’ checkbox changes with JS event listener rather than explicit ‘onclick’. Change: Move JS into file and enqueue rather outputting directly into footer. Change: Up 3.2
- — Version 3.1 Add new debugging configuration option Fix bug that resulted from WP 3.2’s update to a new phpmailer Fix bug with checking ‘Use GMail?’ did not auto-reset settings accordingly (jQuery bug regarding .attr() vs .prop() int 3.1
Security history
via Wordfence IntelligenceThe 1 disclosed vulnerability is patched in the current version (3.5). Sites still on an older version should update.
- 2024-02-26 CVE-2024-27192 Improper Neutralization of Input During Web Page Generation Affects <= 3.1 Patched in 3.5
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 8.1.12 · WP 6.6.1
Languages
via translate.wordpress.orgTranslated into 73 languages, 2 at 90% or more
Plus 49 more locales with partial translations.
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
4 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 Short description names no action; say what the plugin does for the site.
- ✓ Has a FAQ 6 questions in the FAQ.
- ✓ FAQ asks real questions 6 of 6 read like questions a user would type.
- ! Names who it is for One audience phrase ("use this"); say who the plugin is for and 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 1 list; assistants quote headed sections and bullet lists, not paragraphs.
- ✓ Enough to quote 1,197 characters of description.
- ✓ Tags match the text 4 of 5 tags appear in the text; "coffee2code" does not.
Growth timeline
Install-tier crossings we have observed, and how long each tier took to outgrow
- 2026-05-01 7K+ → 6K+ down after 260 days in tier
- 2025-08-14 8K+ → 7K+ down after 1 days in tier
- 2025-08-13 7K+ → 8K+ up after 9 days in tier
- 2025-08-04 8K+ → 7K+ down after 6 days in tier
- 2025-07-29 7K+ → 8K+ up after 39 days in tier
- 2025-06-20 8K+ → 7K+ down after 1 days in tier
- 2025-06-19 7K+ → 8K+ up after 1 days in tier
- 2025-06-18 8K+ → 7K+ down 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).
-
WP Mail SMTP by WPForms – SMTP for Reliable Email Delivery with Gmail, Outlook, Amazon SES, Brevo, Other SMTP & More 4M+ installs · 4.8★ · 3 shared tags A -
Easy WP SMTP – WordPress SMTP and Email Logs: Gmail SMTP, Office 365, Outlook, Custom SMTP, and more 500K+ installs · 4.6★ · 3 shared tags A -
SMTP Mailer 70K+ installs · 4.5★ · 3 shared tags A -
WPO365 | MICROSOFT 365 GRAPH MAILER 10K+ installs · 4.7★ · 3 shared tags A -
Gmail SMTP 10K+ installs · 4.1★ · 3 shared tags A -
MailerSend – Official SMTP Integration 2K+ installs · 3.4★ · 3 shared tags B
Embed this report card
Drop a live Pulse card for Configure SMTP into a readme, a review or a deck. It updates itself.
<iframe src="https://plugins.wpmayor.com/embed/configure-smtp" width="480" height="300" style="border:0" loading="lazy" title="Configure SMTP — Plugin Pulse"></iframe> Configure SMTP: 6K+ active installs, 4.9★ (45 reviews). Plugin Pulse (WP Mayor), as of 2026-11-01. https://plugins.wpmayor.com/plugin/configure-smtp
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