Simple Footnotes
by Andrew Nacin · Uncategorized
Also makes 5 other plugins · 21.6K+ installs across the portfolio →
Create simple, elegant footnotes on your site. Use the [ref] shortcode and the plugin takes care of the rest.
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 48/100
Stale · Likely abandoned
Active installs
600+
≈650 estimated
Momentum
—
no download trend yet
Biggest opportunity: Under-ranked on “endnotes”. wp.org puts you #21; on merit you place #10. The plugins above you are winning on install count, not on rating or upkeep.
48 health vs 58 average across 25,755 Uncategorized plugins
Install conversion
How it's measured →2.6%
of downloads still active
At least 600 of 23.2K lifetime downloads are still running, above its category: the median Uncategorized plugin keeps 0.6%, across 17,772 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 11+ years — the top precursor to removal once a vulnerability is found.
- Compatibility drift. Tested only up to WordPress 4.1.42, 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 4365 days ago, past the ~180 days where wp.org starts discounting
Tested up to WordPress 4.1.42; the current branch is 6.8
4.7★ over 15 reviews, smoothed to 4.24★ and held back under 25 reviews
4 of 5 tags set · short description in place
To rank higher: Last updated 4365 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| endnotes your tag | #21 | #10 | 0 |
| footnotes your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| references your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| shortcode your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
1 search this plugin appeared in over the last 90 days. 3 of its tags aren't in the top 24 for their own search.
What to do about it
- Under-ranked on “endnotes”. wp.org puts you #21; on merit you place #10. The plugins above you are winning on install count, not on rating or upkeep.
- “footnotes”, “references” and “shortcode” 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 · 1,489 days · wp.org + Plugin Pulse archive
30-day downloads
Rolling 30-day volume · peak 261 · 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
12.0y ago
latest release · v0.3 · 19 Nov 2014
3
tagged releases on record
Recent releases
What its installed base runs
via wordpress.orgShare of active installs on each version of this plugin · 100% 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 “600+”. Our estimate pins where the real number sits.
Crossed into this band 9 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 1 Apr 2015
Recent reviews
All reviews on wp.org ↗- ★★★★★ Anonymous10.0y ago
The fix at https://wordpress.org/support/topic/duplicate-entries-on-wp-35/ no longer seems to work, and https://wordpress.org/support/topic/single-footnote-appears-repeated-three-times/ doesn’t appear to have been addressed. Shame – it was a great little plugin. This topic was modified 9 years, 8 months ago by kalebeul.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ leeked10.3y ago
This was one of the only footnotes plugins I could find that supported using shortcodes inside of the footnote content. It is simple and works well.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ gilmichelini10.6y ago
Does exactly what I was looking for! It displays below the page buttons in a way other footnote plugins did not.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ ElectricFeet10.9y ago
Does what it says, very efficiently.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ glitteryspindles11.3y ago
Simple, clean footnotes. Just the way I want it.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ Justin Fletcher11.5y ago
I added this to my suggested plugins of Role Based Help Notes years ago. its an elegant way to create a little more flexibility to notes and documents, always great to have up your sleeve. Thanks Nacin!
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ FX Bénard11.6y ago
Je l’utilise sur mon site et j’en suis plus que satisfait. La solution simple et légère pour incorporer de jolies notes de bas de page dans vos articles. Je la recommande ! Petit détail, il faut mettre les [ref]à la mano[/ref] mais rien de rédhibitoire.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ christinecooper11.6y ago
I was expecting to install this plugin and perform various changes to the source files but for what it does, this is a very elegantly coded piece. For future upgrades, please keep it lightweight and simple as it is. Great job!
Read on wp.org ↗
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 28 Oct 2026Can an assistant quote this readme? Eight deterministic checks over the wp.org listing, no model involved.
- ✓ Says what it does "Create simple, elegant footnotes on your site. Use the [ref] shortcode and the plugin takes care of the rest."
- ! Has a FAQ No FAQ section.
- ! FAQ asks real questions No FAQ to judge.
- ! Names who it is for Never says who the plugin is for or 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 348 characters of description; under 1,000 there is little to quote.
- ✓ Tags match the text 2 of 4 tags appear in the text; "endnotes", "references" do not.
Growth timeline
Install-tier crossings we have observed, and how long each tier took to outgrow
- 2026-02-10 700+ → 600+ down after 5 days in tier
- 2026-02-05 600+ → 700+ up after 3 days in tier
- 2026-02-02 700+ → 600+ down after 2 days in tier
- 2026-01-31 600+ → 700+ up after 1 days in tier
- 2026-01-30 700+ → 600+ down after 267 days in tier
- 2025-05-08 800+ → 700+ down after 1 days in tier
- 2025-05-07 700+ → 800+ up after 1 days in tier
- 2025-05-06 800+ → 700+ down after 189 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).
- F FD Footnotes Plugin 1K+ installs · 4.3★ · 2 shared tags D
-
Blank Footnotes 300+ installs · 4.3★ · 2 shared tags A -
Shortcodes Ultimate – Content Elements 400K+ installs · 4.9★ · 1 shared tag A - M MW WP Form 200K+ installs · 4.1★ · 1 shared tag B
-
Shortcoder — Create Shortcodes for Anything 100K+ installs · 4.8★ · 1 shared tag A -
Display Posts – Easy lists, grids, navigation, and more 70K+ installs · 4.8★ · 1 shared tag C
Embed this report card
Drop a live Pulse card for Simple Footnotes into a readme, a review or a deck. It updates itself.
<iframe src="https://plugins.wpmayor.com/embed/simple-footnotes" width="480" height="300" style="border:0" loading="lazy" title="Simple Footnotes — Plugin Pulse"></iframe> Simple Footnotes: 600+ active installs, 4.7★ (15 reviews). Plugin Pulse (WP Mayor), as of 2026-11-01. https://plugins.wpmayor.com/plugin/simple-footnotes
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