Author Image
by Denis de Bernardy · Uncategorized
Also makes 3 other plugins · 11.1K+ installs across the portfolio →
Lets you easily add author images on your site.
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 43/100
Stale · Likely abandoned · Few reviews
Active installs
1K+
≈1.5K estimated
Momentum
-4%
downloads vs prior 30d
Biggest opportunity: “author” and “author image” aren't earning a slot. You list them, but you're not in the first 24 results for those searches. WordPress.org counts only your first five tags, so free the slot for a search you can win.
43 health vs 58 average across 25,736 Uncategorized plugins
Install conversion
How it's measured →0.7%
of downloads still active
At least 1K of 145.1K lifetime downloads are still running, in line with its category: the median Uncategorized plugin keeps 0.6%, across 17,765 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.
High removal-risk signals
63/100Maintenance and integrity signals that tend to precede a WordPress.org removal. Not an official status, a heads-up to act.
- Long abandoned. No update in 8+ years — the top precursor to removal once a vulnerability is found.
- Compatibility drift. Tested only up to WordPress 4.3.34, well behind 6.8.
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.
Under-optimized
Most to gain: Update recency
Updated 3259 days ago, past the ~180 days where wp.org starts discounting
Tested up to WordPress 4.3.34; the current branch is 6.8
3.0★ over 3 reviews, smoothed to 4.04★ and held back under 25 reviews
3 of 5 tags set · short description in place
To rank higher: Last updated 3259 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.
Not enough tracked days yet to call a direction. Momentum needs at least three keywords measured a week or more apart.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| semiologic your tag | #3 | #5 | 0 |
| author your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| author image your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
1 search this plugin appeared in over the last 90 days. 2 of its tags aren't in the top 24 for their own search.
What to do about it
- “author” and “author image” aren't earning a slot. You list them, but you're not in the first 24 results for those searches. WordPress.org counts only your first five tags, so free the slot for a search you can win.
Daily downloads
Since 5 Oct 2022 · 1,488 days · wp.org + Plugin Pulse archive
30-day downloads
Rolling 30-day volume · peak 392 · 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
8.9y ago
latest release · v4.9.3 · 28 Nov 2017
13
tagged releases on record
Recent releases
What its installed base runs
via wordpress.orgShare of active installs on each version of this plugin · 96% 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 16 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 28 Mar 2015
Recent reviews
All reviews on wp.org ↗- ★★★★★ Salpetriere10.5y ago
The Author Image plugin would benefit from using the default WordPress media uploader, rather than loading additional functionality to upload/store the images. This is also important because it would allow us to make use of the WordPress image sizes we have defined elsewhere. Currently this is not possible, which is a big detriment to the plugin.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ theatereleven12.2y ago
I’m still shocked that an author image is so complicated in WordPress, but this plugin fixes the problem. Also, it let’s you link to an about page which ROCKS. I love that. Thanks guys! Works great.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ harry3316613.3y ago
http://startoholics.in/2013/08/user-gives-a-missed-call-and-your-customer-gets-verified-dial2verify/ like in this link, at the end, the pic of this user is not being shown. I tried disabling gravatar too, but then only a blank image is shown. Can you please help and let me know what I need to do? And yes, I have changed the permissions of the folder too.
Read on wp.org ↗
Behavioral tests
via WP HiveAutomated install-time checks, tested on PHP 7.2.16 · WP 5.3
Languages
via translate.wordpress.orgTranslated into 49 languages, 3 at 90% or more · development strings
Plus 25 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
5 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 "Lets you easily add author images on your site."
- ✓ Has a FAQ 6 questions in the FAQ.
- ! FAQ asks real questions 5 of 6 FAQ entries are headings, not questions ("Installation Instructions").
- ✓ Names who it is for Names its audience or use cases ("if you run", "use this").
- ! Names what it works with Names no plugin, service or platform it works with.
- ! Headings and lists 10 headings and 0 lists; assistants quote headed sections and bullet lists, not paragraphs.
- ✓ Enough to quote 3,167 characters of description.
- ✓ Tags match the text All 3 tags appear in the text.
Growth timeline
Install-tier crossings we have observed, and how long each tier took to outgrow
- 2025-07-05 2K+ → 1K+ down after 2 days in tier
- 2025-07-03 1K+ → 2K+ up after 3 days in tier
- 2025-06-30 2K+ → 1K+ down after 645 days in tier
- 2023-09-24 3K+ → 2K+ down after 355 days in tier
- 2022-10-04 4K+ → 3K+ down after 516 days in tier
- 2021-05-06 5K+ → 4K+ down after 194 days in tier
- 2020-10-24 7K+ → 5K+ down after 429 days in tier
- 2019-08-22 10K+ → 7K+ down
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).
-
Edit Author Slug 100K+ installs · 4.7★ · 1 shared tag C - W WP Meta and Date Remover 80K+ installs · 4.2★ · 1 shared tag B
-
Hide/Remove Metadata 20K+ installs · 3.7★ · 1 shared tag B - D Disable Author Archives 10K+ installs · 4.1★ · 1 shared tag B
-
Meks Smart Author Widget 10K+ installs · 4.1★ · 1 shared tag C -
VK Post Author Display 10K+ installs · 4.1★ · 1 shared tag A
Embed this report card
Drop a live Pulse card for Author Image into a readme, a review or a deck. It updates itself.
<iframe src="https://plugins.wpmayor.com/embed/sem-author-image" width="480" height="300" style="border:0" loading="lazy" title="Author Image — Plugin Pulse"></iframe> Author Image: 1K+ active installs, 3.0★ (3 reviews). Plugin Pulse (WP Mayor), as of 2026-10-31. https://plugins.wpmayor.com/plugin/sem-author-image
Spotted a number that looks wrong? Report a data issue and we'll check it against the source.