SMK Sidebar Generator
by Andrei Surdu · Admin & Utilities
Also makes 4 other plugins · 10.1K+ installs across the portfolio →
Create unlimited custom sidebars and widget areas. Display different sidebars on specific pages, posts, or custom post types with conditional logic.
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 75/100
Few reviews
Active installs
10K+
≈15K estimated
Momentum
-1%
downloads vs prior 30d
Biggest opportunity: Add “sidebars” and “sidebar widget” to your wp.org tags. You rank #15 and #16 for them without listing them, close enough for a declared tag to move you up. WordPress.org counts only your first five tags, so with 4 listed these are the slots worth spending.
75 health vs 56 average across 5,896 Admin & Utilities plugins
Install conversion
How it's measured →2.4%
of downloads still active
At least 10K of 413.1K lifetime downloads are still running, above its category: the median Admin & Utilities plugin keeps 0.6%, across 4,189 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.
This plugin shipped 1 release 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.
Well optimized
Most to gain: Rating quality
Updated 257 days ago, past the ~180 days where wp.org starts discounting
Tested up to WordPress 6.9.11, the current branch or newer
4.4★ over 5 reviews, smoothed to 4.13★ and held back under 25 reviews
4 of 5 tags set · short description in place
To rank higher: Too few reviews to rank on quality — nudge happy users to leave one.
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.
31
Momentum
Losing ground
-0.8
Velocity
places per keyword, 28d
5%
Breadth
of keywords climbing, 28d
-0.4
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| sidebar your tag | #7 | #18 | down 1 |
| conditional sidebar | #3 | #15 | down 1 |
| custom sidebar your tag | #10 | #20 | down 3 |
| admin sidebar | #8 | #17 | up 1 |
| generator your tag | #17 | #24 | down 1 |
| sidebars | #15 | #22 | down 3 |
| create sidebar | #7 | #20 | — |
| unlimited sidebars | #7 | #23 | 0 |
| custom sidebars | #20 | #22 | down 3 |
| sidebar widget | #16 | #23 | down 1 |
| post sidebar | #10 | #21 | down 1 |
| sidebar menu | #18 | #24 | down 4 |
| sidebar posts | #11 | #24 | down 1 |
| page sidebar | #12 | #23 | down 3 |
| posts on sidebar | #12 | #24 | 0 |
| posts in sidebar | #13 | #24 | 0 |
| sidebar plugin | #13 | #23 | down 1 |
| create sidebars | #14 | #23 | 0 |
| sidebar menu widget | #16 | #24 | down 2 |
| site generator | #17 | #21 | 0 |
| widget your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
61 searches this plugin appeared in over the last 90 days, 20 listed. 38 left out as unrelated or noise (years, numbers, stray words). 1 of its tags isn't in the top 24 for their own search.
What to do about it
- Add “sidebars” and “sidebar widget” to your wp.org tags. You rank #15 and #16 for them without listing them, close enough for a declared tag to move you up. WordPress.org counts only your first five tags, so with 4 listed these are the slots worth spending.
Daily downloads
Since 5 Oct 2022 · 1,488 days · wp.org + Plugin Pulse archive
30-day downloads
Rolling 30-day volume · peak 7.6K · 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
Occasionally updatedHow often this plugin actually ships. A steady rhythm is the maintenance signal a single "last updated" date can't show.
1
releases in the last 12 months
9mo ago
latest release · v3.6.0 · 17 Feb 2026
10
tagged releases on record
Recent releases
What its installed base runs
via wordpress.orgShare of active installs on each version of this plugin · 31% 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 “10K+”. Our estimate pins where the real number sits.
Crossed into this band 18 months ago; the previous band took 20 months to cross, which places it about 50% of the way through.
Install history since 1 Dec 2016
Latest updates
via wp.org changelogRecent releases and news for this plugin
- — Version 3.6.0 Fixed: Shortcode now properly returns content instead of echoing Security: Added proper escaping to prevent XSS vulnerabilities Fixed: Undefined variable warning in HTML class helper Fixed: Removed deprecated extract() f 3.6.0
- — Version 3.5.2 Compatibility with WordPress 6.4 3.5.2
- — Version 3.5.0 PHP 8+ Compatibility Various code improvements 3.5.0
- — Version 3.4.3 Bug fix: Individual taxonomy conditional fix 3.4.3
- — Version 3.4.2 Bug fix: WP 5.7 compatibility 3.4.2
- — Version 3.4.0 Fix: Incorrect conditional replacement Compatibility with WordPress 5.5 3.4.0
Behavioral tests
via WP HiveAutomated install-time checks, tested on PHP 8.1.12 · WP 7.0.1
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
7 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 unlimited custom sidebars and widget areas. Display different sidebars on specific pages, posts, or..."
- ✓ Has a FAQ 11 questions in the FAQ.
- ✓ FAQ asks real questions 11 of 11 read like questions a user would type.
- ! Names who it is for One audience phrase ("perfect for"); say who the plugin is for and what they use it for.
- ✓ Names what it works with Mentions WooCommerce.
- ✓ Headings and lists 4 headings and 4 lists.
- ✓ Enough to quote 2,408 characters of description.
- ✓ Tags match the text All 4 tags appear in the text.
Growth timeline
Install-tier crossings we have observed, and how long each tier took to outgrow
- 2025-05-02 20K+ → 10K+ down after 593 days in tier
- 2023-09-17 30K+ → 20K+ down after 479 days in tier
- 2022-05-26 40K+ → 30K+ down after 282 days in tier
- 2021-08-17 60K+ → 40K+ down after 758 days in tier
- 2019-07-21 70K+ → 60K+ down after 789 days in tier
- 2017-05-23 60K+ → 70K+ up after 353 days in tier
- 2016-06-04 40K+ → 60K+ up after 257 days in tier
- 2015-09-21 30K+ → 40K+ 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).
-
Custom Sidebars – Dynamic Sidebar Classic Widget Area Manager 100K+ installs · 4.7★ · 3 shared tags A -
Recent Posts Widget With Thumbnails 100K+ installs · 4.8★ · 2 shared tags A -
Image Widget 100K+ installs · 4.8★ · 2 shared tags A -
Fixed Widget and Sticky Elements for WordPress 70K+ installs · 4.7★ · 2 shared tags D -
Content Aware Sidebars – Fastest Widget Area Plugin 30K+ installs · 4.9★ · 2 shared tags A -
Meks Simple Flickr Widget 10K+ installs · 4.0★ · 2 shared tags C
Embed this report card
Drop a live Pulse card for SMK Sidebar Generator into a readme, a review or a deck. It updates itself.
<iframe src="https://plugins.wpmayor.com/embed/smk-sidebar-generator" width="480" height="300" style="border:0" loading="lazy" title="SMK Sidebar Generator — Plugin Pulse"></iframe> SMK Sidebar Generator: 10K+ active installs, 4.4★ (5 reviews). Plugin Pulse (WP Mayor), as of 2026-11-01. https://plugins.wpmayor.com/plugin/smk-sidebar-generator
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