Performant Translations
by Pascal Birchler · Performance
Also makes 3 other plugins · 43.6K+ installs across the portfolio →
Making internationalization/localization in WordPress faster than ever before.
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 88/100
no flags
Active installs
30K+
≈39K estimated
Momentum
-29%
downloads vs prior 30d
Biggest opportunity: Swap “performance” for “before”. “performance” isn't earning its slot: you're not in the first 24 results for its own search. “before” sits at #23 untagged, close enough for a declared tag to move it up. All five slots are taken, so one has to go.
88 health vs 69 average across 1,807 Performance plugins
Install conversion
How it's measured →13%
of downloads still active
At least 30K of 227.2K lifetime downloads are still running, above its category: the median Performance plugin keeps 1.4%, across 1,101 plugins.
Downloads count every update, not just first installs, so older and more frequently released plugins read lower. Compare against other Performance 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 1 release 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 74 days ago
Tested up to WordPress 7.1.4, the current branch or newer
4.9★ over 16 reviews, smoothed to 4.29★ 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.
35
Momentum
Losing ground
-0.3
Velocity
places per keyword, 28d
9%
Breadth
of keywords climbing, 28d
-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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| internationalization your tag | #1 | #1 | 0 |
| translations | #2 | #3 | 0 |
| i18n your tag | #3 | #3 | 0 |
| translation your tag | #4 | #6 | down 1 |
| localization your tag | #6 | #11 | down 1 |
| translation plugin | #8 | #14 | down 1 |
| before | #23 | #16 | up 1 |
| wordpress translation | #14 | #20 | 0 |
| localization plugin | #15 | #18 | 0 |
| wordpress translation plugin | #24 | #23 | down 4 |
| performance your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
38 searches this plugin appeared in over the last 90 days, 10 listed. 28 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
- Swap “performance” for “before”. “performance” isn't earning its slot: you're not in the first 24 results for its own search. “before” sits at #23 untagged, close enough for a declared tag to move it up. All five slots are taken, so one has to go.
Daily downloads
Since 1 Sep 2023 · 1,157 days · wp.org + Plugin Pulse archive
30-day downloads
Rolling 30-day volume · peak 14.9K · 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.
1
releases in the last 12 months
5mo ago
latest release · v1.2.0 · 25 May 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 · 99% 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 “30K+”. Our estimate pins where the real number sits.
Crossed into this band 28 days ago and a band this size takes about a year or more to cross, so the real count is still just under 40K.
Install history since 31 Aug 2023
Recent reviews
All reviews on wp.org ↗- ★★★★★ Ahmad Zia Zahedi11mo ago
Very helpful! Easy to access and accurate.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ Abdullah Aldeghaim1.1y ago
Works great. Assisted with the issues, and it’s easy to use.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ magneetjeswinkel2.6y ago
What this plugin does is amazing! There were some issues that made my website slow. The website achieved a mobile page speed of 52. Blocked display for more than 10 seconds. I don’t have the technical knowledge to fix this in the code. This would have cost me around $600. I found this plugin and all errors were removed from the website with one click. I am incredibly happy with the result. And that with a free plugin! I knew it should be possible. Because I am so happy, I take the paid subscription! Thank you very much!
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ Jeroen Rotty2.8y ago
Browsing the dashboard feels instant snappier, even if your hosting is already fast and performant – it still makes a difference!
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ Benedikt Ledl2.8y ago
I’ve got a multi language site (with WPML) that has a huge performance problem. I was not able to figure out what is actually causing the performance problem, the main problem probably has nothing to do with i18n, this plugin still helps cause it significantely speeds up the translations, leaving the only bottleneck to be the unknown problem. Many thanks for your efforts!
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ juregolob2.9y ago
I tried this plugin on a couple of websites and I believe it makes my admin user experience a bit faster. Cached front end is fast as ever. It works great with Polylang, WooCommerce and Loco Translate. I like where this is going and I hope it gets implemented into the WP Core soon. Update:Duplicator (Pro) throws a runtime error when trying to make a backup while this plugin is activated. Temporarily disabling it solves the issue. This topic was modified 2 years, 8 months ago by juregolob. This topic was modified 2 years, 7 months ago by juregolob.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ Kodo3.0y ago
This problem has been around for a long time and I’ve used various plugins. I hope it will be added to the core soon!
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ Servemark3.1y ago
Use it on a client site and we maintained under 1 second load times, which is on par with our other sites. Deserves 5 stars hands down.
Read on wp.org ↗
Latest updates
via wp.org changelogRecent releases and news for this plugin
- — Version 1.2.0 This plugin now requires WordPress 6.5 1.2.0
- — Version 1.1.2 Fixed a minor regression when assembling file paths to look up. 1.1.2
- — Version 1.1.1 Fixed: Addressed a slight performance regression in 1.1.0. Fixed: Addressed an issue with incorrect plural forms for certain locales. 1.1.1
- — Version 1.1.0 Enhancement: Support for this functionality existing in WordPress 6.5. Enhancement: Added hardening for file paths not being strings because of a faulty plugin filter. Enhancement: Invalidate OPcache after writing PHP fi 1.1.0
- — Version 1.0.9 Enhancement: Improved compatibility with WPML string translation add-on. 1.0.9
- — Version 1.0.8 Fixed: Added workaround for potential file permission issues. 1.0.8
Behavioral tests
via WP HiveAutomated install-time checks, tested on PHP 8.1.12 · WP 6.5.2
Languages
via translate.wordpress.orgTranslated into 33 languages, 30 at 90% or more
Plus 9 more locales with partial translations.
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
4 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 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 Names no plugin, service or platform it works with.
- ! Headings and lists 2 headings and 0 lists; assistants quote headed sections and bullet lists, not paragraphs.
- ✓ Enough to quote 1,185 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
- 2026-10-03 40K+ → 30K+ down after 1 days in tier
- 2026-10-02 30K+ → 40K+ up after 4 days in tier
- 2026-09-28 40K+ → 30K+ down after 331 days in tier
- 2025-11-01 50K+ → 40K+ down after 14 days in tier
- 2025-10-18 40K+ → 50K+ up after 177 days in tier
- 2025-04-24 30K+ → 40K+ up after 144 days in tier
- 2024-12-01 20K+ → 30K+ up after 1 days in tier
- 2024-11-30 30K+ → 20K+ down after 3 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).
-
Preferred Languages 3K+ installs · 4.6★ · 4 shared tags A - A Admin in English 1K+ installs · 4.5★ · 3 shared tags D
-
Loco Translate 1M+ installs · 4.8★ · 2 shared tags B -
Polylang 900K+ installs · 4.7★ · 2 shared tags B -
WP Multilang – Translation and Multilingual Plugin 10K+ installs · 4.2★ · 2 shared tags A -
Language Fallback 5K+ installs · 4.5★ · 2 shared tags A
Embed this report card
Drop a live Pulse card for Performant Translations into a readme, a review or a deck. It updates itself.
<iframe src="https://plugins.wpmayor.com/embed/performant-translations" width="480" height="300" style="border:0" loading="lazy" title="Performant Translations — Plugin Pulse"></iframe> Performant Translations: 30K+ active installs, 4.9★ (16 reviews). Plugin Pulse (WP Mayor), as of 2026-10-31. https://plugins.wpmayor.com/plugin/performant-translations
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