Maintenance

Reviewers say the latest redesign stripped out simple maintenance-page text editing, buried the settings in upsells, and broke pages that used to just work.

How well this listing is tuned to rank in WordPress.org search, on the factors an owner controls. Not popularity, optimization.

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.

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.

370 searches this plugin appeared in over the last 90 days, 20 listed. 309 left out as unrelated or noise (years, numbers, stray words).

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

How often this plugin actually ships. A steady rhythm is the maintenance signal a single "last updated" date can't show.

Share of active installs on each version of this plugin · 24% run the current release. Green is the current release; a big slice on older versions is a user base that has stopped updating.

Crossed into this band 2.2 years ago; a band this size takes about a year or more to cross, which places it about 90% of the way through.

1. ★★★★★ Mario Günter

   4mo ago

   I have used this plugin regularly and was always happy with it, including the free version. Since the latest update, however, it has become unnecessarily complicated and confusing to use. I was still able to change the SEO title, but I can no longer find a clear way to edit the actual heading and text on the maintenance page. According to the plugin description, these elements should still be customizable, but in the current interface this no longer seems to work properly or intuitively.

   Read on wp.org ↗
2. ★★★★★ andy_woz

   4mo ago

   Why? Why would you take something that worked so well and turn it into something so bad? Used to be a simple one page config now its all full of bloat, upsells and some weird ass block builder UI that isn’t even Gutenberg. SMH

   Read on wp.org ↗
3. ★★★★★ digitalkristen

   4mo ago

   I used to use this plugin exclusively as a maintenance page/temporarily taking a website offline. Now, the customization options are all but gone. I need to customize the text on the maintenance page on each site that I manage, now I have to replace this plugin on over 20 websites. Like other reviewers have said, this plugin USED to be awesome but if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. Now the backend is just full of upsells and nothing useful. Two weeks ago, this would have been a 5-star review. They pushed out an “update” that downgraded the plugin and broke most of the most useful features. Sad. And now we get to find a different plugin to use on all of my client websites, install and configure. At least a few days of work that didn’t need to happen if they had left a great plugin to remain great but they got too greedy and broke their plugin.

   Read on wp.org ↗
4. ★★★★★ Netzialist

   4mo ago

   Three days ago there was a new version of the plugin. Completely different backend, basic settings disappeared completely. I can’t access the text on my maintenance page any more. The backend is filled up with upselling stuff. Very annoying. Has to go.

   Read on wp.org ↗
5. ★★★★★ hetkanbeteronline

   4mo ago

   This plugin had one simple job to do for our clients show a custom text that can be switched on and off without us having to mess with htaccess and custom pages. Nothing fancy no need for custom backgrounds just a simple text page.Low and behold now we have to waste minutes setting everything up making sure it does not break with caching optimization. And basically costing us money as in time to use it because how unstable it behaves.Well we have found the perfect solution for this problem.We will begin removing this plugin from hundreds of our client sites and we will not be returning it ever again due to poor management decisions on this company part.When a company approves this kind of mess for production towards there users they clearly lack professional QA, QC management.

   Read on wp.org ↗
6. ★★★★★ evildoer

   4mo ago

   If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. This is one of the few plugins that I have been using with zero problems – until now. Lousy UI, confusing and my content is all mashed up. So disappointed.

   Read on wp.org ↗
7. ★★★★★ printessenz

   4mo ago

   Used to be my go to plugin but the latest update is ridiculously bad. Not only are the UI changes horrible (back- and frontend!) but it also simply doesn’t work anymore. Content changes are not saved, previously working content is now messed up, the full view close button is in the middle of the page, the HTML view adds styling elements on its own, while simultaneously somehow minifying everything as soon as you switch back to text mode and is then weirdly formated, making the normal text mode basically unusable as well…

   Read on wp.org ↗
8. ★★★★★ oscar001

   4mo ago

   I am so sorry but have you heard of the “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” philosophy? This new design update is terrible!! Its gone from what used to be a great and simple maintenance mode plugin that one could edit extremely simply and easily to something that is far too cumbersome (and looks like it was designed by a child or someone new to design). Please, for the love of god, undo this monstrosity. I also don’t think the layout has been tested on smaller screens either as the “adverts” on the right hand side take up about 40% of the available screen!! Move these to the bottom of the page if you want them that big OR better yet reduce the width of it. Truly devastating that my “go to” maintenance mode plugin has been ruined by this update.

   Read on wp.org ↗

The 1 disclosed vulnerability is patched in the current version (4.32). Sites still on an older version should update.

1. Patched Medium · 4.8 Maintenance <= 4.02 - Authenticated Stored Cross-Site Scripting ↗
   2021-07-21 CVE-2021-24533 Improper Neutralization of Input During Web Page Generation Affects < 4.03 Patched in 4.03

Automated install-time checks, tested on PHP 8.1.12 · WP 7.0.1

Translated into 93 languages, 31 at 90% or more

Plus 69 more locales with partial translations.

Whether ChatGPT and Claude name this plugin when asked the category question, and whether the readme gives them something to quote.

Growth timeline

Install-tier crossings we have observed, and how long each tier took to outgrow

1. 2024-08-12 900K+ → 1M+ up after 291 days in tier
2. 2023-10-26 800K+ → 900K+ up after 261 days in tier
3. 2023-02-07 700K+ → 800K+ up after 349 days in tier
4. 2022-02-23 600K+ → 700K+ up after 256 days in tier
5. 2021-06-12 500K+ → 600K+ up after 250 days in tier
6. 2020-10-05 400K+ → 500K+ up after 947 days in tier
7. 2018-03-03 200K+ → 400K+ up after 755 days in tier
8. 2016-02-07 100K+ → 200K+ 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).

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Drop a live Pulse card for Maintenance into a readme, a review or a deck. It updates itself.

Maintenance: 1M+ active installs, 4.4★ (869 reviews). Plugin Pulse (WP Mayor), as of 2026-11-01. https://plugins.wpmayor.com/plugin/maintenance