Dark Reader – Beautiful Dark Mode for any Website
by bdthemes · Uncategorized
Also makes 19 other plugins · 246.4K+ installs across the portfolio →
Complete WordPress dark mode with brightness control, contrast adjustment, toggle styles, and auto detection.
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
A 86/100
Few reviews
Active installs
200+
≈250 estimated
Momentum
-15%
downloads vs prior 30d
Biggest opportunity: Support resolution scores 0/100. Mark more forum threads resolved — the resolved ratio feeds the ranking.
86 health vs 58 average across 25,736 Uncategorized plugins
Install conversion
How it's measured →2.1%
of downloads still active
At least 200 of 9.7K 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.
This plugin shipped 22 releases in the last 12 months, and every existing install that updated counted as another download. wp.org publishes no split between first installs and updates, so we show the raw rate rather than guess at one.
Details
Recent review vibe
read from the latest 5 reviews to 2026-05-25Reviewers say it's easy to set up and works as expected, with a few noting it doesn't slow their sites down and that support responds quickly.
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: Support resolution
Updated 10 days ago
Tested up to WordPress 7.1.4, the current branch or newer
5.0★ over 5 reviews, smoothed to 4.18★ and held back under 25 reviews
5 of 5 tags set · short description in place
0 of 1 support threads resolved in the last 2 months
To rank higher: Mark more forum threads resolved — the resolved ratio feeds the ranking.
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.
36
Momentum
Losing ground
-0.2
Velocity
places per keyword, 28d
13%
Breadth
of keywords climbing, 28d
-0.1
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| brightness | #3 | #5 | 0 |
| reader | #5 | #17 | down 1 |
| dark your tag | #7 | #13 | 0 |
| dark mode your tag | #7 | #13 | 0 |
| wordpress dark mode | #7 | #12 | 0 |
| screen reader | #5 | #15 | down 2 |
| wp dark your tag | #9 | #24 | up 1 |
| dark theme your tag | #9 | #15 | down 1 |
| night mode your tag | #9 | #15 | 0 |
| website reader | #5 | #16 | 0 |
| reader mode | #5 | #17 | 0 |
| light dark toggle | #5 | #11 | 0 |
| dark ui | #5 | #15 | 0 |
| pdf reader | #10 | #14 | 0 |
| go dark | #6 | #11 | 0 |
| website night mode | #7 | #13 | 0 |
| dark mode toggle | #7 | #13 | 0 |
| night mode on off | #7 | #13 | 0 |
| sunset | #12 | #10 | 0 |
| dark mode switcher | #8 | #17 | 0 |
68 searches this plugin appeared in over the last 90 days, 20 listed. 31 left out as unrelated or noise (years, numbers, stray words).
What to do about it
- Your five tags are all earning their place. Each gets you onto page 1 of its own search, so none is worth giving up. “reader”, “screen reader” and “wordpress dark mode” (#5, #5 and #7 untagged) would be the next worth testing if a slot frees up.
Daily downloads
Since 19 May 2025 · 530 days · wp.org + Plugin Pulse archive
30-day downloads
Rolling 30-day volume · peak 1.3K · peaks are release surges
Directory rank
Ranked about #11,300 to #12,900, alongside the other plugins at 200+ 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.
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
Actively maintainedHow often this plugin actually ships. A steady rhythm is the maintenance signal a single "last updated" date can't show.
22
releases in the last 12 months
10d ago
latest release · v1.2.1 · 21 Oct 2026
26
tagged releases on record
Recent releases
What its installed base runs
via wordpress.orgShare of active installs on each version of this plugin. 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 “200+”. 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 53% of the way through.
Install history since 18 May 2025
Recent reviews
All reviews on wp.org ↗- ★★★★★ Nguyễn Quốc Hùng5mo ago
Simple, Fast, Effective! I’d like your plugin!
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ sleepyhead8mo ago
I bought Dark Reader PRO and have no regrets. The plugin works well, and the premium features are very useful, with a nice toggle button and other advanced settings. It does not slow down my website. What I especially like is the customer service, which is fast, friendly, and solution-oriented. There’s an amazing dev team behind Dark Reader!
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ YoGha11mo ago
Really great plugin — simple, fast, and works exactly as expected. Dark mode looks clean on my site and didn’t break anything. Super easy to set up and a nice upgrade for the user experience. Highly recommended!
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ Istiak Rayhan1.2y ago
Very easy to use plugin. Liked it.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ inakipsiko1.5y ago
Thank you for this plugin.
Read on wp.org ↗
Behavioral tests
via WP HiveAutomated install-time checks, tested on PHP 8.1.12 · WP 7.0
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
6 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 "Complete WordPress dark mode with brightness control, contrast adjustment, toggle styles, and auto detection."
- ✓ Has a FAQ 12 questions in the FAQ.
- ✓ FAQ asks real questions 12 of 12 read like questions a user would type.
- ! Names who it is for One audience phrase ("use it"); say who the plugin is for and what they use it for.
- ✓ Names what it works with Mentions WooCommerce, Elementor, Gutenberg, Divi.
- ✓ Headings and lists 3 headings and 3 lists.
- ✓ Enough to quote 4,472 characters of description.
- ! Tags match the text Only 2 of 5 tags appear in the text ("dark theme", "Night Mode", "wp dark" missing).
Growth timeline
Install-tier crossings we have observed, and how long each tier took to outgrow
- 2026-04-20 100+ → 200+ up after 1 days in tier
- 2026-04-19 200+ → 100+ down after 4 days in tier
- 2026-04-15 100+ → 200+ up after 158 days in tier
- 2025-11-08 90+ → 100+ up after 3 days in tier
- 2025-11-05 80+ → 90+ up after 2 days in tier
- 2025-11-03 70+ → 80+ up after 3 days in tier
- 2025-10-31 60+ → 70+ up after 2 days in tier
- 2025-10-29 50+ → 60+ up 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).
-
Dark Mode – Improve Accessibility with AI Powered Dark Theme 20K+ installs · 4.5★ · 4 shared tags A -
Dark Mode Toggle 2K+ installs · 4.3★ · 4 shared tags A -
Darkify – Dark Mode & Night Mode for Website & Admin (Dark Theme Included) 1K+ installs · 4.5★ · 4 shared tags A -
DarkMySite – Advanced Dark Mode Plugin for WordPress 900+ installs · 4.3★ · 4 shared tags B -
DarkLooks – Dark Mode Switcher For WordPress 800+ installs · 4.4★ · 4 shared tags B -
Darklio – AI-Powered Dark Mode Plugin for WordPress — installs · 3.6★ · 4 shared tags
Embed this report card
Drop a live Pulse card for Dark Reader – Beautiful Dark Mode for any Website into a readme, a review or a deck. It updates itself.
<iframe src="https://plugins.wpmayor.com/embed/dark-reader" width="480" height="300" style="border:0" loading="lazy" title="Dark Reader – Beautiful Dark Mode for any Website — Plugin Pulse"></iframe> Dark Reader – Beautiful Dark Mode for any Website: 200+ active installs, 5.0★ (5 reviews). Plugin Pulse (WP Mayor), as of 2026-10-31. https://plugins.wpmayor.com/plugin/dark-reader
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