Sidebar Manager Light
by OTWthemes · Admin & Utilities
Also makes 11 other plugins · 4.6K+ installs across the portfolio →
Create custom sidebars (widget areas) and replace any existing sidebar so you can display relevant content on different pages.
Removed from WordPress.org
wp.org closed this plugin on 2026-08-20. It's no longer installable or updated. If you're running it, plan a replacement: closures are often security-related and WordPress won't warn you.
Health
F 39/100
Stale · Likely abandoned · Open vulnerability
Active installs
1K+
≈1.5K estimated
Momentum
+83%
downloads vs prior 30d
Biggest opportunity: “custom sidebar”, “custom widget area widgets” and “replace sidebar” 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.
39 health vs 56 average across 5,897 Admin & Utilities plugins
Install conversion
How it's measured →1.4%
of downloads still active
At least 1K of 72.4K lifetime downloads are still running, above its category: the median Admin & Utilities plugin keeps 0.6%, across 4,190 plugins.
Downloads count every update, not just first installs, so older and more frequently released plugins read lower. Compare against other Admin & Utilities plugins, not across the directory. wp.org reports active installs as the bottom of a band, so the real rate is this or higher.
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 1703 days ago, past the ~180 days where wp.org starts discounting
Tested up to WordPress 5.9.16; the current branch is 6.8
4.3★ over 13 reviews, smoothed to 4.14★ and held back under 25 reviews
5 of 5 tags set · short description in place
To rank higher: Last updated 1703 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| custom sidebar your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| custom widget area widgets your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| replace sidebar your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| replace widget area your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| sidebar your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
0 searches this plugin appeared in over the last 90 days. 5 of its tags aren't in the top 24 for their own search.
What to do about it
- “custom sidebar”, “custom widget area widgets” and “replace sidebar” 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 · 1,416 days · wp.org + Plugin Pulse archive
30-day downloads
Rolling 30-day volume · peak 233 · 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
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
4.7y ago
latest release · v1.17 · 4 Mar 2022
17
tagged releases on record
Recent releases
What its installed base runs
via wordpress.orgShare of active installs on each version of this plugin · 62% 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 3.1 years 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 20 Mar 2016
Security history
via Wordfence Intelligence3 open vulnerabilities affect the current version (1.18). 0 of 3 disclosed are patched.
- Open High · 7.2 Sidebar Manager Light <= 1.18 - Unauthenticated Stored Cross-Site Scripting via 'sbm_description' Parameter ↗2026-09-09 CVE-2026-76562 Improper Neutralization of Input During Web Page Generation Affects <= 1.18 No patch available
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 7.4.8 · WP 5.9.1
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
Can an assistant quote this readme? Eight deterministic checks over the wp.org listing, no model involved.
Not checked yet. The readme could not be read from WordPress.org on this visit.
Growth timeline
Install-tier crossings we have observed, and how long each tier took to outgrow
- 2023-09-12 2K+ → 1K+ down after 2 days in tier
- 2023-09-10 1K+ → 2K+ up after 1 days in tier
- 2023-09-09 2K+ → 1K+ down after 1 days in tier
- 2023-09-08 1K+ → 2K+ up after 1 days in tier
- 2023-09-07 2K+ → 1K+ down after 338 days in tier
- 2022-10-04 3K+ → 2K+ down after 413 days in tier
- 2021-08-17 4K+ → 3K+ 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).
-
Custom Sidebars – Dynamic Sidebar Classic Widget Area Manager 100K+ installs · 4.7★ · 2 shared tags A -
SMK Sidebar Generator 10K+ installs · 4.0★ · 2 shared tags B - W Widgetize Pages Light 2K+ installs · 4.1★ · 2 shared tags F
-
CG Dynamic Sidebar 100+ installs · 4.0★ · 2 shared tags D -
Recent Posts Widget With Thumbnails 100K+ installs · 4.8★ · 1 shared tag A -
Image Widget 100K+ installs · 4.8★ · 1 shared tag A
Embed this report card
Drop a live Pulse card for Sidebar Manager Light into a readme, a review or a deck. It updates itself.
<iframe src="https://plugins.wpmayor.com/embed/sidebar-manager-light" width="480" height="300" style="border:0" loading="lazy" title="Sidebar Manager Light — Plugin Pulse"></iframe> Sidebar Manager Light: 1K+ active installs, 4.3★ (13 reviews). Plugin Pulse (WP Mayor), as of 2026-11-01. https://plugins.wpmayor.com/plugin/sidebar-manager-light
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