Plugin Check (PCP)
by WordPress.org · Performance
Also makes 22 other plugins · 11.2M+ installs across the portfolio →
Plugin Check is a WordPress.org tool which provides checks to help plugins meet the directory requirements and follow various best practices.
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 87/100
no flags
Active installs
10K+
≈14K estimated
Momentum
+40%
downloads vs prior 30d
Biggest opportunity: Swap “accessibility” and “performance” for “checks” and “plugin performance”. “accessibility” isn't earning its slot: you're not in the first 24 results for its own search. “checks” sits at #7 untagged, close enough for a declared tag to move it up. “performance” isn't earning its slot: you're not in the first 24 results for its own search. “plugin performance” sits at #17 untagged, close enough for a declared tag to move it up. All five slots are taken, so one has to go.
87 health vs 69 average across 1,808 Performance plugins
Install conversion
How it's measured →0.6%
of downloads still active
At least 10K of 1.6M lifetime downloads are still running, below its category: the median Performance plugin keeps 1.4%, across 1,103 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 6 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.
Well optimized
Most to gain: Support resolution
Updated 76 days ago
Tested up to WordPress 7.0.8, the current branch or newer
4.5★ over 36 reviews, smoothed to 4.27★
5 of 5 tags set · short description in place
0 of 1 support threads resolved in the last 2 months
To rank higher: Mark more forum threads resolved — the resolved ratio feeds the ranking.
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.
39
Momentum
Losing ground
-0.2
Velocity
places per keyword, 28d
20%
Breadth
of keywords climbing, 28d
-0.1
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| plugin check | #1 | #2 | 0 |
| plugin best practices your tag | #2 | #3 | 0 |
| check | #4 | #5 | 0 |
| checks | #7 | #12 | 0 |
| check in | #5 | #8 | 0 |
| requirements | #14 | #19 | up 3 |
| site check | #9 | #12 | 0 |
| plugin performance | #17 | #19 | up 2 |
| accessibility plugin | #13 | #12 | 0 |
| plugin directory | #15 | #22 | down 1 |
| accessibility automated testing | #18 | #14 | down 1 |
| directory plugin | #20 | #23 | down 2 |
| security check | #22 | #19 | down 3 |
| accessibility your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| performance your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| security your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| testing your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
147 searches this plugin appeared in over the last 90 days, 13 listed. 134 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 “accessibility” and “performance” for “checks” and “plugin performance”. “accessibility” isn't earning its slot: you're not in the first 24 results for its own search. “checks” sits at #7 untagged, close enough for a declared tag to move it up. “performance” isn't earning its slot: you're not in the first 24 results for its own search. “plugin performance” sits at #17 untagged, close enough for a declared tag to move it up. All five slots are taken, so one has to go.
Daily downloads
Since 22 Sep 2023 · 1,136 days · wp.org + Plugin Pulse archive
30-day downloads
Rolling 30-day volume · peak 222.8K · 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
Actively maintainedHow often this plugin actually ships. A steady rhythm is the maintenance signal a single "last updated" date can't show.
6
releases in the last 12 months
3mo ago
latest release · v2.1.0 · 16 Aug 2026
21
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 “10K+”. Our estimate pins where the real number sits.
Crossed into this band 5 months ago; a band this size takes about a year or more to cross, which places it about 37% of the way through.
At the current install trend, crossing 20K+ in roughly 1533 days.
Install history since 10 Mar 2015
Recent reviews
All reviews on wp.org ↗- ★★★★★ Hub50504mo ago
As a developer of Plugins, this plugin is perfect for helping me not only to comply with WordPress standards, but also to code better. I have no doubt that every developer will agree that this is a very useful plugin for coding.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ mlipenk4mo ago
Why not use it? I’ve written multiple custom plugins for my site, and I like that I can double-check my work with this plugin. In the rush to come up with my own plugin solutions, I often miss things. This plugin helps me remember to cover the basic best practices of plugin authoring, especially security. Even if there were false-positives, they can always be ignored.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ Mohammad Ansari6mo ago
Plugin Check has been really helpful for improving my plugin before publishing updates on WordPress.org. The new option to download the issues as an Excel file is very useful and makes it much easier to review and fix everything step by step. Thanks to the team for this great tool. I hope future updates add even easier options to make the workflow faster and smoother.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ Barry8mo ago
The plugin review started with false positives and was not accurate.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ Stachethemes9mo ago
Useful tool for catching issues early. If you’re serious about plugin development, this is a must-have.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ dansart9mo ago
Great tool to help finding issues with your plugin. The only thing I would like to see as a button that allows you to ignore certain messages, or mark them as fixed. So if you re-scan, it is easier to see, what still needs to be done. Also helpful would be a better indicator how serious a issue is. I know there are Errors and Warnings, but maybe with a score? And “Error” in red and “Warning” in orange for better accessibility.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ muzKore10mo ago
This plugin helped me identify areas of my plugin that I thought I had taken care of. When developing my first plugin. I learned a lot through the feedback given and was able to re-run and eventually remove of all errors. On a side note, what I did discover was that a lot of the warnings were general and some were not really applicable to my plugin. It took time and research to work this out so don’t freak out if you get a heap of feedback from the plugin. Try to filter down to the errors, get them sorted and then move onto the warnings and fix what you can where applicable.Cheers. This topic was modified 6 months ago by muzKore. This topic was modified 6 months ago by muzKore.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ Blucube11mo ago
By it’s nature this is going to flag false positives – potential issues that you’ve dealt with in different ways, or issues that don’t necessarily apply to your particular case – and it does. But it’s a really useful tool to run a quick check and uncover little omissions or improvements to be made.
Read on wp.org ↗
Latest updates
via wp.org changelogRecent releases and news for this plugin
- — Version 2.0.0 Enhancement – Add WordPress functions compatibility check to flag usage of functions unavailable in a plugin’s declared minimum WordPress version. Enhancement – Add Write File check to detect plugins saving data in the p 2.0.0
- — Version 1.9.0 Enhancement – Use the WordPress 7.0 core AI connectors. Enhancement – Add External Admin Menu Links check to detect external URLs in top-level admin menus. Enhancement – Add and refine the block metadata compatibility ch 1.9.0
- — Version 1.8.0 Enhancement – Add AI-powered Plugin Namer tool to evaluate plugin names for trademark conflicts and naming best practices. Enhancement – Add AI Instructions Detection Check to identify AI tool configuration files and dev 1.8.0
- — Version 1.7.0 Enhancement – Add Minified File Detection Check to identify and handle minified files in plugins. Enhancement – Implement check for insecure use of wp_verify_nonce() to improve security validation. Enhancement – Add dire 1.7.0
- — Version 1.6.0 Enhancement – Support strict output format for CLI commands. Enhancement – Improve check for donate link in readme. Enhancement – Improve info check in Version utils. Enhancement – Improve URL validation for plugin heade 1.6.0
- — Version 1.5.0 Enhancement – Improve url validation to check duplicate protocol. Enhancement – Update severity for incorrect textdomains and i18n error codes. Enhancement – Now issues in URL Author check are ERROR instead of WARNING. E 1.5.0
Behavioral tests
via WP HiveAutomated install-time checks, tested on PHP 8.1.12 · WP 7.0.1
Languages
via translate.wordpress.orgTranslated into 20 languages, 8 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
6 of 8 pass · checked 31 Oct 2026Can an assistant quote this readme? Eight deterministic checks over the wp.org listing, no model involved.
- ✓ Says what it does "Plugin Check is a WordPress.org tool which provides checks to help plugins meet the directory requirements..."
- ✓ Has a FAQ 4 questions in the FAQ.
- ✓ FAQ asks real questions 4 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 Mentions WP-CLI.
- ! Headings and lists 1 heading and 3 lists; assistants quote headed sections and bullet lists, not paragraphs.
- ✓ Enough to quote 3,731 characters of description.
- ✓ Tags match the text 4 of 5 tags appear in the text; "plugin best practices" does not.
Growth timeline
Install-tier crossings we have observed, and how long each tier took to outgrow
- 2026-06-17 9K+ → 10K+ up after 42 days in tier
- 2026-05-06 8K+ → 9K+ up after 48 days in tier
- 2026-03-19 7K+ → 8K+ up after 47 days in tier
- 2026-01-31 6K+ → 7K+ up after 1 days in tier
- 2026-01-30 7K+ → 6K+ down after 2 days in tier
- 2026-01-28 6K+ → 7K+ up after 61 days in tier
- 2025-11-28 5K+ → 6K+ up after 90 days in tier
- 2025-08-30 4K+ → 5K+ up after 115 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).
-
ManageWP Worker 1M+ installs · 4.6★ · 2 shared tags A -
Simply Static – The Static Site Generator 30K+ installs · 4.5★ · 2 shared tags A -
LiteSpeed Cache 7M+ installs · 4.8★ · 1 shared tag B -
Wordfence Security – Firewall, Malware Scan, and Login Security 5M+ installs · 4.7★ · 1 shared tag A -
Hostinger Tools 3M+ installs · 3.6★ · 1 shared tag B -
Really Simple Security – Simple and Performant Security (formerly Really Simple SSL) 3M+ installs · 4.9★ · 1 shared tag A
Embed this report card
Drop a live Pulse card for Plugin Check (PCP) into a readme, a review or a deck. It updates itself.
<iframe src="https://plugins.wpmayor.com/embed/plugin-check" width="480" height="300" style="border:0" loading="lazy" title="Plugin Check (PCP) — Plugin Pulse"></iframe> Plugin Check (PCP): 10K+ active installs, 4.5★ (36 reviews). Plugin Pulse (WP Mayor), as of 2026-10-31. https://plugins.wpmayor.com/plugin/plugin-check
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