Featured Image Column
by Austin · Admin & Utilities
Also makes 4 other plugins · 15K+ installs across the portfolio →
Adds a column to any post type edit screen with the featured image if it exists.
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
no flags
Active installs
2K+
≈2.5K estimated
Momentum
-6%
downloads vs prior 30d
Biggest opportunity: Add “exists” and “featured page” to your wp.org tags. You rank #9 and #17 for them without listing them, close enough for a declared tag to move you up. WordPress.org counts only your first five tags, so with 3 listed these are the slots worth spending.
86 health vs 56 average across 5,897 Admin & Utilities plugins
Install conversion
How it's measured →4.1%
of downloads still active
At least 2K of 48.5K lifetime downloads are still running, above its category: the median Admin & Utilities plugin keeps 0.6%, across 4,191 plugins.
Downloads count every update, not just first installs, so older and more frequently released plugins read lower. Compare against other Admin & Utilities 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 3 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
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.
Excellent listing optimization
Most to gain: Rating quality
Updated 79 days ago
Tested up to WordPress 7.1.0, the current branch or newer
4.5★ over 12 reviews, smoothed to 4.18★ and held back under 25 reviews
3 of 5 tags set · short description in place
To rank higher: Too few reviews to rank on quality — nudge happy users to leave one.
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.
38
Momentum
Losing ground
-0.2
Velocity
places per keyword, 28d
20%
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| featured image column | #1 | #3 | 0 |
| column your tag | #6 | #8 | down 2 |
| featured image your tag | #9 | #14 | down 1 |
| exists | #9 | #17 | down 1 |
| featured | #13 | #14 | down 1 |
| admin column | #9 | #14 | 0 |
| edit featured image | #6 | #8 | 0 |
| remove featured image | #7 | #11 | down 1 |
| one column | #8 | #19 | 0 |
| default featured image | #9 | #13 | down 1 |
| featured page | #17 | #21 | down 1 |
| featured image size | #10 | #14 | 0 |
| post column | #11 | #20 | 0 |
| admin featured thumbnail | #11 | #14 | down 1 |
| featured admin thumbnail | #11 | #14 | up 1 |
| add featured image | #12 | #17 | down 1 |
| columns | #22 | #18 | down 5 |
| featured posts | #24 | #24 | down 1 |
| featured post | #24 | #20 | 0 |
| admin columns | #24 | #20 | 0 |
| admin your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
29 searches this plugin appeared in over the last 90 days, 20 listed. 9 left out as unrelated or noise (years, numbers, stray words). 1 of its tags isn't in the top 24 for their own search.
What to do about it
- Add “exists” and “featured page” to your wp.org tags. You rank #9 and #17 for them without listing them, close enough for a declared tag to move you up. WordPress.org counts only your first five tags, so with 3 listed these are the slots worth spending.
Daily downloads
Since 5 Oct 2022 · 1,489 days · wp.org + Plugin Pulse archive
30-day downloads
Rolling 30-day volume · peak 1.2K · 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
Occasionally updatedHow often this plugin actually ships. A steady rhythm is the maintenance signal a single "last updated" date can't show.
3
releases in the last 12 months
3mo ago
latest release · v1.2.0 · 24 Jul 2026
8
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 “2K+”. Our estimate pins where the real number sits.
Crossed into this band 2.1 years 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 20 Jul 2019
Recent reviews
All reviews on wp.org ↗- ★★★★★ phalancs4mo ago
I mean, its a tiny plugin, but why in the world would you load the full image size? I mean come on. At least load the thumbnail.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ kylomylo8.4y ago
Wordpress 4.9.6 and it works fine! Thanks!
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ tiago11.3y ago
the plugin is just great and it has a great support!
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ LogoLogics11.6y ago
Great, just what I was looking for! Thanks! Annie
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ WebPrezence12.0y ago
Clever, lightweight plugin that really helps me see if I’ve used a featured image twice, if the featured image accurately reflects what I’d like, to ensure an author didn’t forget to add a featured image …. works for pages and posts (and as the author says, custom post types). I have no issues at all with the quick edit feature … no issues period. And it really fits in well with the rest of your WordPress admin. I’ll be using this on all of my domains in the future. Thanks for making this available on the WordPress repository!
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ cubecolour12.1y ago
A useful and lightweight plugin which works well with WordPress 4.0 and doesn’t add a lot of overhead. update: another reviewer mentioned that it breaks after using quick edit on a post. I tried this and it indeed does seem to have an issue with not being able to display the thumbnail immediately after using quick edit, but this seems to be rectified by selecting the menu to display the posts/pages/cpt again. It would be good if this issue could be fixed but it isn’t a showstopper.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ taghaboy12.2y ago
Just what I wanted and freeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ mr.perplexed12.2y ago
GOOD: Does exactly what it says with no configuration and no clutter. BAD: Breaks when you Quick Edit a post or page. [ link redacted, please do not post links in reviews ]
Read on wp.org ↗
Latest updates
via wp.org changelogRecent releases and news for this plugin
- — Version 1.1.0 Tested upto WordPress 6.7.1. Added GitHub Release -> WordPress.org Action. Resolve 1.0.0 Release call_user_func errors and incorrect file path(s). 1.1.0
- — Version 1.0.0 Update code for PHP >= 8.0. Update for WordPress >= 6.2. 1.0.0
- — Version 0.3.2 Missed short-array syntax updates for PHP 0.3.2
- — Version 0.3.1 Fix for PHP versions Please update your PHP versions! 0.3.1
- — Version 0.3 Code cleanup. Tested with WordPress 4.8 new minimum version requirement set to 4.4. Image columns work correctly when using Quick Edit now (no more collapsing)! Removed use of additional wp_cache.s Toggling setting contr 0.3
- — Version 0.2.3 Make sure get_the_image() returns the cached image. /ht Djules 0.2.3
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
3 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 "Adds a column to any post type edit screen with the featured image if it exists."
- ! 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 1 heading and 0 lists; assistants quote headed sections and bullet lists, not paragraphs.
- ✓ Enough to quote 1,722 characters of description.
- ✓ Tags match the text 2 of 3 tags appear in the text; "admin" does not.
Growth timeline
Install-tier crossings we have observed, and how long each tier took to outgrow
- 2024-10-05 3K+ → 2K+ down after 1 days in tier
- 2024-10-04 2K+ → 3K+ up after 4 days in tier
- 2024-09-30 3K+ → 2K+ down after 2 days in tier
- 2024-09-28 2K+ → 3K+ up after 8 days in tier
- 2024-09-20 3K+ → 2K+ down after 2 days in tier
- 2024-09-18 2K+ → 3K+ up after 1 days in tier
- 2024-09-17 3K+ → 2K+ down after 386 days in tier
- 2023-08-28 4K+ → 3K+ down after 27 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).
-
WEN Featured Image 3K+ installs · 4.2★ · 2 shared tags B - R Require Featured Image 3K+ installs · 3.9★ · 2 shared tags D
-
Sortable Word Count Reloaded 2K+ installs · 3.8★ · 2 shared tags B -
Three Column Screen Layout 1K+ installs · 3.8★ · 2 shared tags D -
Loginizer 1M+ installs · 4.8★ · 1 shared tag A -
Redux Framework 900K+ installs · 4.4★ · 1 shared tag A
Embed this report card
Drop a live Pulse card for Featured Image Column into a readme, a review or a deck. It updates itself.
<iframe src="https://plugins.wpmayor.com/embed/featured-image-column" width="480" height="300" style="border:0" loading="lazy" title="Featured Image Column — Plugin Pulse"></iframe> Featured Image Column: 2K+ active installs, 4.5★ (12 reviews). Plugin Pulse (WP Mayor), as of 2026-11-01. https://plugins.wpmayor.com/plugin/featured-image-column
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