Debug Toolkit
by Tonya Mork · Uncategorized
Also makes 3 other plugins · 2M+ installs across the portfolio →
Code debug made easier and more enjoyable.
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 50/100
Stale · Likely abandoned
Active installs
10+
≈20 estimated
Momentum
-18%
downloads vs prior 30d
Biggest opportunity: Under-ranked on “var dump”. wp.org puts you #21; on merit you place #9. The plugins above you are winning on install count, not on rating or upkeep.
50 health vs 58 average across 25,738 Uncategorized plugins
Install conversion
How it's measured →0.1%
of downloads still active
At least 10 of 9.5K lifetime downloads are still running, below its category: the median Uncategorized plugin keeps 0.6%, across 17,771 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 7+ years — the top precursor to removal once a vulnerability is found.
- Compatibility drift. Tested only up to WordPress 5.1.28, well behind 6.8.
Details
Recent review vibe
read from the latest 12 reviews to 2023-07-25Developers call it a must-have debugging tool, with a couple of small feature requests like logging dumps to debug.log.
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 2792 days ago, past the ~180 days where wp.org starts discounting
Tested up to WordPress 5.1.28; the current branch is 6.8
5.0★ over 13 reviews, smoothed to 4.29★ and held back under 25 reviews
5 of 5 tags set · short description in place
To rank higher: Last updated 2792 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.
32
Momentum
Losing ground
-0.2
Velocity
places per keyword, 24d
0%
Breadth
of keywords climbing, 24d
-0.2
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| var dump your tag | #21 | #9 | 0 |
| backtrace your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| debug your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| debugger your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| print r 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
- Under-ranked on “var dump”. wp.org puts you #21; on merit you place #9. The plugins above you are winning on install count, not on rating or upkeep.
- “backtrace”, “debug” and “debugger” 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 147 · peaks are release surges
Directory rank
Ranked about #30,100 to #45,000, alongside the other plugins at 10+ 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
Downloads in the last 30 days for every 1,000 active sites.
Not enough installs to measure. This needs at least 100 active sites; below that, a handful of downloads reads as tens of thousands.
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
7.6y ago
latest release · v1.0.1 · 11 Mar 2019
1
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 “10+”. Our estimate pins where the real number sits.
Crossed into this band yesterday and a band this size takes about a year or more to cross, so the real count is still just under 20.
Install history since 28 Jan 2020
Recent reviews
All reviews on wp.org ↗- ★★★★★ Sébastien Dumont3.3y ago
This is a must have developers tool. Can’t work without it. Highly recommend it.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ Lukman Nakib3.9y ago
One of my favourite plugin. Helps a lot with development and debugging. Please keep it update or if we could get a chance to contribute we would love that.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ Hasanuzzaman Shamim5.6y ago
This plugin is amazing, Highly recommended for developers.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ jaballadares66.9y ago
For so long I have been trying to figure out a way to debug my PHP in WordPress similar to how the JS console works (being able to drill down into objects and arrays). I have no idea how much work Tonya put into this, but I am forever indebted! Thank you so much! I wish i could send you a gift basket or make a donation.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ digitalfisherman7.3y ago
Can’t live without it !
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ Jim Ratliff7.3y ago
Makes debugging super easy, particularly for people like me—just starting out in WordPress development. Turn it on, and immediately the errors become apparent.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ Nate Finch7.4y ago
This is a great new plugin, and I love having the option to use Kint or VarDumper, they’re invaluable. Having Whoops in there is a major plus. Tonya rocks!
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ Pratik Shrestha7.5y ago
Wonderful plugin to debug errors. A feature request would be to dump the variable in debug.log file as well when define( ‘WP_DEBUG_LOG’, true ); is set in config file.
Read on wp.org ↗
Behavioral tests
via WP HiveAutomated install-time checks, tested on PHP 7.2.16 · WP 5.2.4
Languages
via translate.wordpress.orgTranslated into 2 languages, 0 at 90% or more
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
5 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 Short description names no action; say what the plugin does for the site.
- ✓ Has a FAQ 4 questions in the FAQ.
- ✓ FAQ asks real questions 4 of 4 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 6 headings and 6 lists.
- ✓ Enough to quote 3,985 characters of description.
- ✓ Tags match the text 4 of 5 tags appear in the text; "debugger" does not.
Growth timeline
Install-tier crossings we have observed, and how long each tier took to outgrow
- 2026-10-31 20+ → 10+ down after 323 days in tier
- 2025-12-12 30+ → 20+ down after 52 days in tier
- 2025-10-21 40+ → 30+ down after 119 days in tier
- 2025-06-24 50+ → 40+ down after 7 days in tier
- 2025-06-17 40+ → 50+ up after 1 days in tier
- 2025-06-16 50+ → 40+ down after 3 days in tier
- 2025-06-13 40+ → 50+ up after 1 days in tier
- 2025-06-12 50+ → 40+ down after 61 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).
- K Kint PHP Debugger 90+ installs · 4.5★ · 4 shared tags D
- H Hikari Krumo 10+ installs · 3.6★ · 4 shared tags
- W wp-dBug 60+ installs · 4.1★ · 3 shared tags D
-
PCo Kint 10+ installs · 4.0★ · 3 shared tags D -
Debug This 2K+ installs · 4.4★ · 2 shared tags C -
Hagakure – Yet Another Error Reporter 30+ installs · 4.1★ · 2 shared tags B
Embed this report card
Drop a live Pulse card for Debug Toolkit into a readme, a review or a deck. It updates itself.
<iframe src="https://plugins.wpmayor.com/embed/debug-toolkit" width="480" height="300" style="border:0" loading="lazy" title="Debug Toolkit — Plugin Pulse"></iframe> Debug Toolkit: 10+ active installs, 5.0★ (13 reviews). Plugin Pulse (WP Mayor), as of 2026-11-01. https://plugins.wpmayor.com/plugin/debug-toolkit
Spotted a number that looks wrong? Report a data issue and we'll check it against the source.