Genesis Sandbox Featured Content Widget
by Travis Smith · Uncategorized
Also makes 11 other plugins · 1.7K+ installs across the portfolio →
Genesis Featured Content with support for custom post types, taxonomies, and so much more.
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
1K+
≈1.5K estimated
Momentum
+25%
downloads vs prior 30d
Biggest opportunity: “cu”, “featured post” and “genesis” 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.
50 health vs 58 average across 25,735 Uncategorized plugins
Install conversion
How it's measured →3.0%
of downloads still active
At least 1K of 33.1K 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.
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 8+ years — the top precursor to removal once a vulnerability is found.
- Compatibility drift. Tested only up to WordPress 3.6.1, 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 3258 days ago, past the ~180 days where wp.org starts discounting
Tested up to WordPress 3.6.1; the current branch is 6.8
5.0★ over 14 reviews, smoothed to 4.30★ and held back under 25 reviews
5 of 5 tags set · short description in place
To rank higher: Last updated 3258 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| genesiswp your tag | #17 | #11 | 0 |
| cu your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| featured post your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| genesis your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| studiopress your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
2 searches this plugin appeared in over the last 90 days, 1 listed. 1 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
- “cu”, “featured post” and “genesis” 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 227 · 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
8.9y ago
latest release · v1.2.6 · 29 Nov 2017
2
tagged releases on record
Recent releases
What its installed base runs
via wordpress.orgShare of active installs on each version of this plugin · 97% 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 “1K+”. Our estimate pins where the real number sits.
Crossed into this band 16 months ago; the previous band took 21 months to cross, which places it about 50% of the way through.
Install history since 6 Sep 2015
Recent reviews
All reviews on wp.org ↗- ★★★★★ staceyzav10.3y ago
LOVE this plugin. It gives you so much flexibility for creating custom feeds on your genesis site!
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ Dave Barr10.5y ago
Does exactly what I needed it to and a lot more.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ David Gordon11.0y ago
Also has lots of great options to adjust the display
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ MCD Diseño Web11.1y ago
Thank you very much for your efforts to develop this plugin, what I was looking for. Congratulations !!! 🙂
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ Anonymous11.1y ago
Great plugin. Works fine.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ DavidB198411.5y ago
Functional and fast.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ rengland7711.6y ago
Exactly what I needed to display posts from a CPT. Thanks for taking the time to share this with us.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ nikcree12.0y ago
Great you have picked this up from where Nick left off. Love the fact you have included a number of hooks to allow us to take customise this plugin even further.
Read on wp.org ↗
Behavioral tests
via WP HiveAutomated install-time checks, tested on PHP 7.2.16 · WP 5.3
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
5 of 8 pass · checked 29 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 3 of 4 read like questions a user would type.
- ! 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 2 headings and 2 lists.
- ✓ Enough to quote 1,106 characters of description.
- ✓ Tags match the text 4 of 5 tags appear in the text; "genesiswp" does not.
Growth timeline
Install-tier crossings we have observed, and how long each tier took to outgrow
- 2025-07-06 2K+ → 1K+ down after 641 days in tier
- 2023-10-04 3K+ → 2K+ down after 1 days in tier
- 2023-10-03 2K+ → 3K+ up after 2 days in tier
- 2023-10-01 3K+ → 2K+ down after 362 days in tier
- 2022-10-04 4K+ → 3K+ down after 776 days in tier
- 2020-08-19 5K+ → 4K+ down after 1596 days in tier
- 2016-04-06 4K+ → 5K+ 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).
- G Genesis Featured Widget Amplified 2K+ installs · 4.5★ · 4 shared tags D
-
Genesis Simple Hooks 20K+ installs · 4.4★ · 3 shared tags B -
Genesis Connect for WooCommerce 10K+ installs · 4.0★ · 3 shared tags B -
Genesis Simple Sidebars 10K+ installs · 4.3★ · 3 shared tags B -
Genesis Simple Menus 2K+ installs · 4.3★ · 3 shared tags B - G Genesis Visual Hook Guide 700+ installs · 4.5★ · 3 shared tags D
Embed this report card
Drop a live Pulse card for Genesis Sandbox Featured Content Widget into a readme, a review or a deck. It updates itself.
<iframe src="https://plugins.wpmayor.com/embed/genesis-featured-content-widget" width="480" height="300" style="border:0" loading="lazy" title="Genesis Sandbox Featured Content Widget — Plugin Pulse"></iframe> Genesis Sandbox Featured Content Widget: 1K+ active installs, 5.0★ (14 reviews). Plugin Pulse (WP Mayor), as of 2026-10-31. https://plugins.wpmayor.com/plugin/genesis-featured-content-widget
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