Cursor Trail
by Marcus (aka @msykes) · Uncategorized
Also makes 13 other plugins · 153.9K+ installs across the portfolio →
Add a cursor trail to your website mouse pointer, with custom pointer image, speed/interval adjustment and scheduling.
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 61/100
Stale · Few reviews
Active installs
100+
≈180 estimated
Momentum
-11%
downloads vs prior 30d
Biggest opportunity: Swap “effects”, “javascript” and “jquery” for “cursor trail”, “trail” and “mouse pointer”. “effects” isn't earning its slot: you're not in the first 24 results for its own search. “cursor trail” sits at #5 untagged, close enough for a declared tag to move it up. “javascript” isn't earning its slot: you're not in the first 24 results for its own search. “trail” sits at #10 untagged, close enough for a declared tag to move it up. “jquery” isn't earning its slot: you're not in the first 24 results for its own search. “mouse pointer” sits at #12 untagged, close enough for a declared tag to move it up. All five slots are taken, so one has to go.
61 health vs 58 average across 25,735 Uncategorized plugins
Install conversion
How it's measured →0.9%
of downloads still active
At least 100 of 11.6K 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.
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 556 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 3 reviews, smoothed to 4.15★ and held back under 25 reviews
5 of 5 tags set · short description in place
To rank higher: Last updated 556 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
Losing ground
-0.8
Velocity
places per keyword, 28d
11%
Breadth
of keywords climbing, 28d
-0.4
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| cursor trail | #5 | #13 | 0 |
| mouse trail | #2 | #7 | 0 |
| trail | #10 | #22 | down 2 |
| mouse pointer | #12 | #15 | 0 |
| cursor your tag | #24 | #22 | down 4 |
| mouse cursor | #22 | #22 | down 1 |
| custom cursor | #24 | #21 | down 2 |
| wordpress cursor | #24 | #21 | 0 |
| cursor plugin | #24 | #21 | down 4 |
| festive | #23 | #18 | up 1 |
| cursor effects | #21 | #23 | down 4 |
| cursor custom | #24 | #23 | down 1 |
| custom mouse pointer | #24 | #20 | down 3 |
| effects your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| javascript your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| jquery your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| pointer your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
18 searches this plugin appeared in over the last 90 days, 13 listed. 5 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
- Swap “effects”, “javascript” and “jquery” for “cursor trail”, “trail” and “mouse pointer”. “effects” isn't earning its slot: you're not in the first 24 results for its own search. “cursor trail” sits at #5 untagged, close enough for a declared tag to move it up. “javascript” isn't earning its slot: you're not in the first 24 results for its own search. “trail” sits at #10 untagged, close enough for a declared tag to move it up. “jquery” isn't earning its slot: you're not in the first 24 results for its own search. “mouse pointer” sits at #12 untagged, close enough for a declared tag to move it up. All five slots are taken, so one has to go.
Daily downloads
Since 5 Oct 2022 · 1,487 days · wp.org + Plugin Pulse archive
30-day downloads
Rolling 30-day volume · peak 187 · peaks are release surges
Directory rank
Ranked about #13,300 to #16,400, alongside the other plugins at 100+ 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
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
1.5y ago
latest release · v1.1 · 23 Apr 2025
2
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 “100+”. Our estimate pins where the real number sits.
Crossed into this band 4.3 years ago; the previous band took 5.7 years to cross, which places it about 77% of the way through.
Install history since 20 Apr 2015
Recent reviews
All reviews on wp.org ↗- ★★★★★ vchavcha2.1y ago
your plugin is so good for custom cursor trail! easy and beautiful
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ Marcus2.3y ago
Testing a review..
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ jakesr5.6y ago
I changed the trial image to some words relevant to my site and now it transformed the whole user experience! Very awsome plugin. You should also allow for the cursor itself to be changed please Marcus. Thanks so much for this plugin!
Read on wp.org ↗
Behavioral tests
via WP HiveAutomated install-time checks, tested on PHP 7.2.16 · WP 5.2.4
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
1 of 8 pass · checked 27 Oct 2026Can an assistant quote this readme? Eight deterministic checks over the wp.org listing, no model involved.
- ✓ Says what it does "Add a cursor trail to your website mouse pointer, with custom pointer image, speed/interval adjustment and..."
- ! Has a FAQ No FAQ section.
- ! FAQ asks real questions No FAQ to judge.
- ! Names who it is for One audience phrase ("if you have"); 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 719 characters of description; under 1,000 there is little to quote.
- ! Tags match the text Only 2 of 5 tags appear in the text ("effects", "javascript", "jquery" missing).
Growth timeline
Install-tier crossings we have observed, and how long each tier took to outgrow
- 2022-07-03 70+ → 100+ up after 2064 days in tier
- 2016-11-07 50+ → 70+ 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).
- J jQuery Updater 20K+ installs · 4.4★ · 2 shared tags A
- U Use Google Libraries 10K+ installs · 4.3★ · 2 shared tags D
-
Custom Cursor For WP 1K+ installs · 4.0★ · 2 shared tags D - S Slideshow 1K+ installs · 3.6★ · 2 shared tags
-
Custom CSS/JS 700+ installs · 4.0★ · 2 shared tags C - R Referrer Input for Contact Form 7 400+ installs · 4.0★ · 2 shared tags D
Embed this report card
Drop a live Pulse card for Cursor Trail into a readme, a review or a deck. It updates itself.
<iframe src="https://plugins.wpmayor.com/embed/cursor-trail" width="480" height="300" style="border:0" loading="lazy" title="Cursor Trail — Plugin Pulse"></iframe> Cursor Trail: 100+ active installs, 5.0★ (3 reviews). Plugin Pulse (WP Mayor), as of 2026-10-31. https://plugins.wpmayor.com/plugin/cursor-trail
Spotted a number that looks wrong? Report a data issue and we'll check it against the source.