Remove Orphan Shortcodes
by Meks · Uncategorized
Also makes 13 other plugins · 94.8K+ installs across the portfolio →
Quickly remove unused (orphan) shortcode tags from your content.
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 51/100
Stale · Likely abandoned
Active installs
1K+
≈1.9K estimated
Momentum
+8%
downloads vs prior 30d
Biggest opportunity: Swap “content” and “php” for “orphan” and “orphan pages”. “content” isn't earning its slot: you're not in the first 24 results for its own search. “orphan” sits at #21 untagged, close enough for a declared tag to move it up. “php” isn't earning its slot: you're not in the first 24 results for its own search. “orphan pages” sits at #24 untagged, close enough for a declared tag to move it up. All five slots are taken, so one has to go.
51 health vs 58 average across 25,735 Uncategorized plugins
Install conversion
How it's measured →4.2%
of downloads still active
At least 1K of 23.9K 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.
Removal-risk signals
28/100Maintenance and integrity signals that tend to precede a WordPress.org removal. Not an official status, a heads-up to act.
- Not actively maintained. No update in about 2 years.
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.
Room to improve
Most to gain: Update recency
Updated 824 days ago, past the ~180 days where wp.org starts discounting
Tested up to WordPress 6.6.11; the current branch is 6.8
3.9★ over 14 reviews, smoothed to 4.06★ and held back under 25 reviews
5 of 5 tags set · short description in place
0 of 1 support threads resolved in the last 2 months
To rank higher: Last updated 824 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.
38
Momentum
Losing ground
-0.3
Velocity
places per keyword, 18d
17%
Breadth
of keywords climbing, 18d
+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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| orphan | #21 | #15 | up 1 |
| orphan pages | #24 | #15 | 0 |
| orphan content | #19 | #16 | 0 |
| content your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| php your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| shortcode your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| shortcodes your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| tag your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
6 searches this plugin appeared in over the last 90 days, 3 listed. 3 left out as unrelated or noise (years, numbers, stray words). 5 of its tags aren't in the top 24 for their own search.
What to do about it
- Swap “content” and “php” for “orphan” and “orphan pages”. “content” isn't earning its slot: you're not in the first 24 results for its own search. “orphan” sits at #21 untagged, close enough for a declared tag to move it up. “php” isn't earning its slot: you're not in the first 24 results for its own search. “orphan pages” sits at #24 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 · 1,488 days · wp.org + Plugin Pulse archive
30-day downloads
Rolling 30-day volume · peak 2.5K · 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
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
2.3y ago
latest release · v1.2 · 29 Jul 2024
2
tagged releases on record
Recent releases
What its installed base runs
via wordpress.orgShare of active installs on each version of this plugin · 95% 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 5.9 years ago; the previous band took 14 months to cross, which places it about 90% of the way through.
Install history since 27 May 2015
Recent reviews
All reviews on wp.org ↗- ★★★★★ syzygist1.7y ago
This is one of those great little plugins that does only one thing, but by doing it, can save hours of frustration and hair-tearing. THANK you for this simple solution to a very common problem!
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ lilunai3.6y ago
I needed to temporarily hide some shortscodes and this plugin works great but… it has also hidden the Rank Math FAQ blocks which are not orphaned, obviously.I hope that in the next update it will be corrected. Fingers crossed.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ brumack4.0y ago
Any gutenberg block storing an array in block attributes JSON is flagged as a shortcode. As most blocks using JSON attributes also use render_callback and server-side rendering, this causes the block to disappear entirely – broken JSON is hard to parse. Ergo, don’t use this if you also use ACF, because any repeater or relationship field in a block can cause the entire thing to disappear.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ leroy4.5y ago
of the sort
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ Stef5.5y ago
Why would anyone want to leave a useless plugin after the cleaning? Make it so it cleans and can be deleted. Otherwise what’s the point? SMH
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ Pencho156.3y ago
Does what it promises and never has created problems. Recommended.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ niallflynn6.5y ago
Does the job! 5 stars
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ tajdarkhan8.0y ago
Thanks a lot, really nice plugin …
Read on wp.org ↗
Behavioral tests
via WP HiveAutomated install-time checks, tested on PHP 7.4.8 · WP 5.9.3
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
2 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 "Quickly remove unused (orphan) shortcode tags from your content."
- ! Has a FAQ No FAQ section.
- ! FAQ asks real questions No FAQ to judge.
- ! Names who it is for One audience phrase ("if you want"); say who the plugin is for and what they use it for.
- ! Names what it works with Names no plugin, service or platform it works with.
- ! Headings and lists 0 headings and 0 lists; assistants quote headed sections and bullet lists, not paragraphs.
- ! Enough to quote 550 characters of description; under 1,000 there is little to quote.
- ✓ Tags match the text 4 of 5 tags appear in the text; "php" does not.
Growth timeline
Install-tier crossings we have observed, and how long each tier took to outgrow
- 2020-12-13 900+ → 1K+ up after 433 days in tier
- 2019-10-07 700+ → 900+ up after 340 days in tier
- 2018-11-01 600+ → 700+ up after 184 days in tier
- 2018-05-01 500+ → 600+ up after 89 days in tier
- 2018-02-01 90+ → 500+ up after 731 days in tier
- 2016-02-01 50+ → 90+ up after 148 days in tier
- 2015-09-06 30+ → 50+ 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).
-
Shortcodes Ultimate – Content Elements 400K+ installs · 4.9★ · 2 shared tags A -
Column Shortcodes 60K+ installs · 4.7★ · 2 shared tags D -
Meks Flexible Shortcodes 10K+ installs · 4.0★ · 2 shared tags C - C Contact Form 7 Shortcode Enabler 10K+ installs · 4.4★ · 2 shared tags C
-
WP Date and Time Shortcode 10K+ installs · 4.6★ · 2 shared tags A -
Bootstrap Shortcodes 4K+ installs · 4.6★ · 2 shared tags B
Embed this report card
Drop a live Pulse card for Remove Orphan Shortcodes into a readme, a review or a deck. It updates itself.
<iframe src="https://plugins.wpmayor.com/embed/remove-orphan-shortcodes" width="480" height="300" style="border:0" loading="lazy" title="Remove Orphan Shortcodes — Plugin Pulse"></iframe> Remove Orphan Shortcodes: 1K+ active installs, 3.9★ (14 reviews). Plugin Pulse (WP Mayor), as of 2026-10-31. https://plugins.wpmayor.com/plugin/remove-orphan-shortcodes
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