Custom Shortcodes
by marapper · Uncategorized
Also makes 5 other plugins · 6.2K+ installs across the portfolio →
Manage custom fields using the insert shortcodes or HTML comment in text of post.
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 45/100
Stale · Likely abandoned · Few reviews
Active installs
5K+
≈5.7K estimated
Momentum
+35%
downloads vs prior 30d
Biggest opportunity: “custom”, “custom fields” and “post” 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.
45 health vs 58 average across 25,737 Uncategorized plugins
Install conversion
How it's measured →72%
of downloads still active
At least 5K of 6.9K lifetime downloads are still running, above its category: the median Uncategorized plugin keeps 0.6%, across 17,770 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 17+ years — the top precursor to removal once a vulnerability is found.
- Compatibility drift. Tested only up to WordPress 2.7, well behind 6.8.
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 6419 days ago, past the ~180 days where wp.org starts discounting
Tested up to WordPress 2.7; the current branch is 6.8
5.0★ over 1 review, smoothed to 4.12★ and held back under 25 reviews
5 of 5 tags set · short description in place
To rank higher: Last updated 6419 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| custom your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| custom fields your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| post your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| shortcodes your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| text your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
2 searches this plugin appeared in over the last 90 days, 0 listed. 2 left out as unrelated or noise (years, numbers, stray words). 5 of its tags aren't in the top 24 for their own search.
What to do about it
- “custom”, “custom fields” and “post” 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 337 · 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
17.6y ago
latest release · v1.0 · 4 Apr 2009
4
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 “5K+”. Our estimate pins where the real number sits.
Crossed into this band 3 months ago; a band this size takes about a year or more to cross, which places it about 72% of the way through.
Install history since 21 Jan 2021
Recent reviews
All reviews on wp.org ↗- ★★★★★ PinkishHue11.3y ago
I stumbled upon this seemingly underrated plugin recently and it’s been great, it just works (and STILL works on WP v 4.2.2, even though it hasn’t been updated in many many years). Nothing to configure, just add your shortcode in your post – [custom name="field-name" value="field-value"] And the custom field is added when you save the post. I’ve found this very useful when I’m importing content in bulk, I can put the shortcodes in using find/replace in my text editor then upload/import the data. Also using this on a directory site where people submit posts via a Contact Form 7 email > then in to Postie > then to a post on WP. Bit of a roundabout way of doing it but this plugin has helped so much so that when a new post is submitted now all the individual bits of data that I need are automatically added in to my custom fields. Brill 🙂 Many thanks to the author, marapper.
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
2 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 "Manage custom fields using the insert shortcodes or HTML comment in text of post."
- ! 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 0 headings and 0 lists; assistants quote headed sections and bullet lists, not paragraphs.
- ! Enough to quote 726 characters of description; under 1,000 there is little to quote.
- ✓ Tags match the text All 5 tags appear in the text.
Growth timeline
Install-tier crossings we have observed, and how long each tier took to outgrow
- 2026-07-21 6K+ → 5K+ down after 24 days in tier
- 2026-06-27 5K+ → 6K+ up after 5 days in tier
- 2026-06-22 6K+ → 5K+ down after 188 days in tier
- 2025-12-16 7K+ → 6K+ down after 114 days in tier
- 2025-08-24 6K+ → 7K+ up after 108 days in tier
- 2025-05-08 5K+ → 6K+ up after 69 days in tier
- 2025-02-28 4K+ → 5K+ up after 135 days in tier
- 2024-10-16 3K+ → 4K+ up after 252 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).
-
Custom Post Type Maker 6K+ installs · 4.4★ · 2 shared tags D - N NS Featured Posts 4K+ installs · 4.5★ · 2 shared tags A
- W WP Typograph Lite 1K+ installs · 4.1★ · 2 shared tags D
-
Advanced Custom Fields (ACF®) 2M+ installs · 4.5★ · 1 shared tag A -
Meta Box – A Framework for Dynamic Websites 500K+ installs · 4.8★ · 1 shared tag A -
Shortcodes Ultimate – Content Elements 400K+ installs · 4.9★ · 1 shared tag A
Embed this report card
Drop a live Pulse card for Custom Shortcodes into a readme, a review or a deck. It updates itself.
<iframe src="https://plugins.wpmayor.com/embed/custom-shortcodes" width="480" height="300" style="border:0" loading="lazy" title="Custom Shortcodes — Plugin Pulse"></iframe> Custom Shortcodes: 5K+ active installs, 5.0★ (1 reviews). Plugin Pulse (WP Mayor), as of 2026-10-31. https://plugins.wpmayor.com/plugin/custom-shortcodes
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