JS Categories List Widget
by Miguel Useche · Blocks
Also makes 1 other plugin · 4K+ installs across the portfolio →
A simple Gutenberg block and JS widget (can be called from posts) for displaying categories in a list with some effects.
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
B 81/100
no flags
Active installs
1K+
≈1.5K estimated
Momentum
+26%
downloads vs prior 30d
Biggest opportunity: Swap “block”, “gutenberg” and “javascript” for “list”, “js” and “collapsible”. “block” isn't earning its slot: you're not in the first 24 results for its own search. “list” sits at #11 untagged, close enough for a declared tag to move it up. “gutenberg” isn't earning its slot: you're not in the first 24 results for its own search. “js” sits at #16 untagged, close enough for a declared tag to move it up. “javascript” isn't earning its slot: you're not in the first 24 results for its own search. “collapsible” sits at #18 untagged, close enough for a declared tag to move it up. All five slots are taken, so one has to go.
81 health vs 71 average across 2,525 Blocks plugins
Install conversion
How it's measured →1.3%
of downloads still active
At least 1K of 77K lifetime downloads are still running, below its category: the median Blocks plugin keeps 2.1%, across 1,579 plugins.
Downloads count every update, not just first installs, so older and more frequently released plugins read lower. Compare against other Blocks 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
Well tuned across the board
Updated 213 days ago, past the ~180 days where wp.org starts discounting
Tested up to WordPress 7.0.8, the current branch or newer
4.8★ over 15 reviews, smoothed to 4.26★ and held back under 25 reviews
5 of 5 tags set · short description in place
1 of 1 support threads resolved in the last 2 months
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
-1.0
Velocity
places per keyword, 28d
9%
Breadth
of keywords climbing, 28d
-0.5
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| categories your tag | #9 | #8 | down 2 |
| list categories | #4 | #7 | 0 |
| list | #11 | #11 | down 2 |
| widget empty categories | #5 | #11 | 0 |
| exclude categories widget | #5 | #7 | 0 |
| categories widget | #8 | #15 | down 2 |
| widget categories | #8 | #15 | 0 |
| collapsible | #18 | #18 | down 3 |
| collapse | #17 | #18 | down 3 |
| list id | #10 | #12 | 0 |
| categories posts ordering | #11 | #14 | down 1 |
| fse | #20 | #17 | up 1 |
| categories posts widget | #13 | #18 | 0 |
| categories post widget | #16 | #21 | — |
| to do list | #14 | #15 | down 3 |
| list category posts | #18 | #22 | down 5 |
| posts list widget | #20 | #21 | down 1 |
| page categories | #22 | #21 | down 3 |
| categories in page | #23 | #22 | down 1 |
| list updated posts | #24 | #21 | — |
| block your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| gutenberg your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| javascript your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| widget your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
124 searches this plugin appeared in over the last 90 days, 20 listed. 103 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
- Swap “block”, “gutenberg” and “javascript” for “list”, “js” and “collapsible”. “block” isn't earning its slot: you're not in the first 24 results for its own search. “list” sits at #11 untagged, close enough for a declared tag to move it up. “gutenberg” isn't earning its slot: you're not in the first 24 results for its own search. “js” sits at #16 untagged, close enough for a declared tag to move it up. “javascript” isn't earning its slot: you're not in the first 24 results for its own search. “collapsible” sits at #18 untagged, close enough for a declared tag to move it up. All five slots are taken, so one has to go.
Daily downloads
Since 5 Oct 2022 · 1,489 days · wp.org + Plugin Pulse archive
30-day downloads
Rolling 30-day volume · peak 1K · 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
7mo ago
latest release · v4.1.1 · 3 Apr 2026
14
tagged releases on record
Recent releases
What its installed base runs
via wordpress.orgShare of active installs on each version of this plugin · 35% 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 3.8 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 23 May 2015
Recent reviews
All reviews on wp.org ↗- ★★★★★ Chris Dennis8.1y ago
Haven’t seen any problems running this with WordPress 4.9.8, even though it’s marked as untested for a long time. It must have been well written.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ firroaga9.6y ago
I was look for this widget for a long long period of time!! It works great!
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ albuquezi10.6y ago
I looked everywhere for a plugin that would do this and I was only satisfied when I got this one. It worked perfectly out of the box and has many configuration options. Really great work!
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ pfta10.7y ago
Works really well, especially to create a simple category page listing. Recommended.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ mar1611.0y ago
I like this plugin very much. Easy to use and simple. It’ll be 5 star if the categories are collapsible to show the posts like in “jQuery Archive List Widget”.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ Vito Martin11.5y ago
Indispensable. Fixes an WordPress issues from factory, to sort categories
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ Trebly11.8y ago
The first plugin that i found which does immediately what it is designed and parameterized to do. – A very soft “drop down” effect. – Can show empty categories (with count=0 of published articles) – For who knows jquery the effects and styles can be easily personalized As it is developed with JQ, I know that it could be the best plugin for these functions with some enhancements (complementary options for example display into a jq pop the main data of articles)
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ coolhatwebdesign12.1y ago
After a lot of searching, I’ve decided to use this particular category filter/navigation plugin for my site since it seems to be the easiest to use and does exactly what I need – sort categories and sub-categories into a neat, stackable menu. Only suggestion I would make would be adding theme options to the menu. Thanks for developing this!
Read on wp.org ↗
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
7 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 "A simple Gutenberg block and JS widget (can be called from posts) for displaying categories in a list with..."
- ✓ Has a FAQ 8 questions in the FAQ.
- ✓ FAQ asks real questions 8 of 8 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 Mentions Gutenberg.
- ✓ Headings and lists 2 headings and 2 lists.
- ✓ Enough to quote 1,408 characters of description.
- ✓ 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
- 2023-01-14 2K+ → 1K+ down after 1 days in tier
- 2023-01-13 1K+ → 2K+ up after 2 days in tier
- 2023-01-11 2K+ → 1K+ down after 844 days in tier
- 2020-09-19 3K+ → 2K+ down after 311 days in tier
- 2019-11-13 7K+ → 3K+ down after 1412 days in tier
- 2016-01-01 5K+ → 7K+ 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).
-
Spectra Legacy – Gutenberg Blocks 1M+ installs · 4.7★ · 2 shared tags A -
Crowdsignal Forms 200K+ installs · 4.1★ · 2 shared tags A -
Flexible Table Block 40K+ installs · 4.6★ · 2 shared tags A -
Genesis Blocks 40K+ installs · 3.8★ · 2 shared tags B -
Snow Monkey Forms 30K+ installs · 4.3★ · 2 shared tags A -
Snow Monkey Blocks 30K+ installs · 4.1★ · 2 shared tags A
Embed this report card
Drop a live Pulse card for JS Categories List Widget into a readme, a review or a deck. It updates itself.
<iframe src="https://plugins.wpmayor.com/embed/jquery-categories-list" width="480" height="300" style="border:0" loading="lazy" title="JS Categories List Widget — Plugin Pulse"></iframe> JS Categories List Widget: 1K+ active installs, 4.8★ (15 reviews). Plugin Pulse (WP Mayor), as of 2026-11-02. https://plugins.wpmayor.com/plugin/jquery-categories-list
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