Sell Downloads
by codepeople · eCommerce
Also makes 32 other plugins · 85.8K+ installs across the portfolio →
Sell Downloads is a WordPress eCommerce plugin for selling digital downloads and products online.
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 82/100
no flags
Active installs
100+
≈150 estimated
Momentum
-39%
downloads vs prior 30d
Biggest opportunity: Swap “ecommerce”, “sales” and “shop” for “sell”, “sell online” and “downloads”. “ecommerce” isn't earning its slot: you're not in the first 24 results for its own search. “sell” sits at #14 untagged, close enough for a declared tag to move it up. “sales” isn't earning its slot: you're not in the first 24 results for its own search. “sell online” sits at #16 untagged, close enough for a declared tag to move it up. “shop” isn't earning its slot: you're not in the first 24 results for its own search. “downloads” sits at #21 untagged, close enough for a declared tag to move it up. All five slots are taken, so one has to go.
82 health vs 71 average across 9,750 eCommerce plugins
Install conversion
How it's measured →0.1%
of downloads still active
At least 100 of 97.9K lifetime downloads are still running, below its category: the median eCommerce plugin keeps 1.4%, across 5,143 plugins.
Downloads count every update, not just first installs, so older and more frequently released plugins read lower. Compare against other eCommerce 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.
Excellent listing optimization
Well tuned across the board
Updated 45 days ago
Tested up to WordPress 7.1.4, the current branch or newer
4.0★ over 21 reviews, smoothed to 4.07★ and held back under 25 reviews
5 of 5 tags set · short description in place
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.
52
Momentum
Holding steady
+0.4
Velocity
places per keyword, 28d
50%
Breadth
of keywords climbing, 28d
+0.3
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| sell downloads your tag | #3 | #5 | up 1 |
| sell | #14 | #20 | up 2 |
| sell digital downloads | #6 | #12 | 0 |
| downloads | #21 | #21 | down 1 |
| sell digital products | #14 | #21 | up 4 |
| sell online | #16 | #23 | up 1 |
| ecommerce your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| sales your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| shop your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| store your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
19 searches this plugin appeared in over the last 90 days, 6 listed. 13 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 “ecommerce”, “sales” and “shop” for “sell”, “sell online” and “downloads”. “ecommerce” isn't earning its slot: you're not in the first 24 results for its own search. “sell” sits at #14 untagged, close enough for a declared tag to move it up. “sales” isn't earning its slot: you're not in the first 24 results for its own search. “sell online” sits at #16 untagged, close enough for a declared tag to move it up. “shop” isn't earning its slot: you're not in the first 24 results for its own search. “downloads” sits at #21 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 1K · peaks are release surges
Directory rank
Ranked about #13,300 to #16,400, alongside the other plugins at 100+ installs. Plugins with the same install count swap places between wp.org requests, so this is where most of them sit. Checked monthly, last on 21 Oct 2026.
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
2mo ago
latest release · v1.2.4 · 16 Sep 2026
22
tagged releases on record
Recent releases
What its installed base runs
via wordpress.orgShare of active installs on each version of this plugin · 79% 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 “100+”. Our estimate pins where the real number sits.
Crossed into this band 10 months 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 14 Mar 2015
Recent reviews
All reviews on wp.org ↗- ★★★★★ cheristojk2.4y ago
I chose (and sadly paid for) this program from reading what was offered. I needed something to sell downloads but that had the feature to give them at no charge to people who qualify for a free gift. A coupon code is what you need, right? Offer it with a “code’ that they apply at checkout and make the discount 100%. Unfortunately the code offered by this program lets just ONE person redeem it, then it goes inactive. It also is not per product, but for the entire catalog of products. I don’t wish to give everything on my site free, just the one that was qualified for. Still trying to figure out a way to make this work since the cost is so high. This topic was modified 2 years, 2 months ago by cheristojk.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ cupideros4.2y ago
Easy to use this plugin. This topic was modified 3 years, 10 months ago by cupideros.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ cmaurand5.9y ago
Instructions are not clear as to how to set this up to get purchase control. All sorts of demonstrating except how to insert the proper purchase link onto a page. meh
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ benzfizz6.2y ago
Cool…
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ joymk7.8y ago
I installed this plug in for a non-techie client who is selling mp3 downloads of her music. The plug in is working well for her without any problems. I appreciate all of the hard work you’ve put into it.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ fabianspring7.8y ago
Exactly what I was looking for. Works stable and the support answers very fast. I needed a custom change and they did a great job. This topic was modified 7 years, 6 months ago by fabianspring. This topic was modified 7 years, 6 months ago by fabianspring.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ lawmacs8.1y ago
Works great just start to evaluate will report back later
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ Ayob Hussin8.2y ago
worth it and satisfy me
Read on wp.org ↗
Security history
via Wordfence IntelligenceAll 4 disclosed vulnerabilities are patched in the current version (1.2.4). Sites still on an older version should update.
- 2014-12-29 CVE-2014-9511 Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory Affects <= 1.0.1 Patched in 1.0.2
Vulnerability records provided by Wordfence Intelligence. Copyright 2012-2026 Defiant Inc. License and terms.
CVE records: Copyright 1999-2026 The MITRE Corporation. CVE terms of use.
Behavioral tests
via WP HiveAutomated install-time checks, tested on PHP 8.1.12 · WP 7.0
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 29 Oct 2026Can an assistant quote this readme? Eight deterministic checks over the wp.org listing, no model involved.
- ✓ Says what it does "Sell Downloads is a WordPress eCommerce plugin for selling digital downloads and products online."
- ✓ Has a FAQ 14 questions in the FAQ.
- ✓ FAQ asks real questions 14 of 14 read like questions a user would type.
- ! Names who it is for One audience phrase ("for stores"); say who the plugin is for and what they use it for.
- ✓ Names what it works with Mentions Elementor, Gutenberg, Beaver Builder, PayPal and 1 more.
- ! Headings and lists 1 heading and 10 lists; assistants quote headed sections and bullet lists, not paragraphs.
- ✓ Enough to quote 8,303 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
- 2026-01-16 200+ → 100+ down after 57 days in tier
- 2025-11-20 100+ → 200+ up after 1 days in tier
- 2025-11-19 200+ → 100+ down after 714 days in tier
- 2023-12-06 300+ → 200+ down after 1 days in tier
- 2023-12-05 200+ → 300+ up after 2 days in tier
- 2023-12-03 300+ → 200+ down after 8 days in tier
- 2023-11-25 200+ → 300+ up after 1 days in tier
- 2023-11-24 300+ → 200+ down after 1 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).
-
TriPay Payment Gateway 800+ installs · 3.9★ · 3 shared tags B -
WC Booster 700+ installs · 4.0★ · 3 shared tags C -
WooCommerce 7M+ installs · 4.5★ · 2 shared tags A -
TI WooCommerce Wishlist 100K+ installs · 4.7★ · 2 shared tags B -
Easy PayPal & Stripe Buy Now Button 10K+ installs · 4.3★ · 2 shared tags A -
Simple Shopping Cart 10K+ installs · 4.5★ · 2 shared tags A
Embed this report card
Drop a live Pulse card for Sell Downloads into a readme, a review or a deck. It updates itself.
<iframe src="https://plugins.wpmayor.com/embed/sell-downloads" width="480" height="300" style="border:0" loading="lazy" title="Sell Downloads — Plugin Pulse"></iframe> Sell Downloads: 100+ active installs, 4.0★ (21 reviews). Plugin Pulse (WP Mayor), as of 2026-10-31. https://plugins.wpmayor.com/plugin/sell-downloads
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