Solr Search for WordPress
by Pantheon Systems · Search
Also makes 7 other plugins · 38.1K+ installs across the portfolio →
Improve your user experience with the Apache Solr search engine for your WordPress website.
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 54/100
Stale · Few reviews
Active installs
100+
≈150 estimated
Momentum
+13%
downloads vs prior 30d
Biggest opportunity: “search” isn't earning a slot. You list it, but you're not in the first 24 results for that search. WordPress.org counts only your first five tags, so free the slot for a search you can win.
54 health vs 63 average across 978 Search plugins
Install conversion
How it's measured →0.1%
of downloads still active
At least 100 of 103.7K lifetime downloads are still running, below its category: the median Search plugin keeps 0.7%, across 645 plugins.
Downloads count every update, not just first installs, so older and more frequently released plugins read lower. Compare against other Search 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.
Room to improve
Most to gain: Update recency
Updated 691 days ago, past the ~180 days where wp.org starts discounting
Tested up to WordPress 6.7.11; the current branch is 6.8
4.0★ over 2 reviews, smoothed to 4.10★ and held back under 25 reviews
1 of 5 tags set · short description in place
To rank higher: Last updated 691 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.
30
Momentum
Losing ground
-0.7
Velocity
places per keyword, 27d
0%
Breadth
of keywords climbing, 27d
-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.
13 searches this plugin appeared in over the last 90 days, 1 listed. 12 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
- “search” isn't earning a slot. You list it, but you're not in the first 24 results for that search. WordPress.org counts only your first five tags, so free the slot for a search you can win.
- Already on top for “solr”. #1 without listing it. A tag would change little there; your slots are better spent on a search you don't yet win.
Daily downloads
Since 5 Oct 2022 · 1,487 days · wp.org + Plugin Pulse archive
30-day downloads
Rolling 30-day volume · peak 2.6K · 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
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
1.9y ago
latest release · v2.6.0 · 9 Dec 2024
39
tagged releases on record
Recent releases
What its installed base runs
via wordpress.orgShare of active installs on each version of this plugin · 91% 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 11 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 23 Dec 2016
Recent reviews
All reviews on wp.org ↗- ★★★★★ Carey3.8y ago
This plugin is intended for use with sites hosted on Pantheon, and may not work with other hosting platforms. This plugin replaces the default search mechanism within WordPress while preserving the familiar integration methods within themes and widgets. The plugin also included a widget that you can use to integrate with the current theme
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ timmytimmy146.5y ago
why on earth would it still be using solr 3.6, also a widget for related posts using solr query would be nice
Read on wp.org ↗
Behavioral tests
via WP HiveAutomated install-time checks, tested on PHP 8.1.12 · WP 6.7.1
Languages
via translate.wordpress.orgTranslated into 2 languages, 0 at 90% or more
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 30 Oct 2026Can an assistant quote this readme? Eight deterministic checks over the wp.org listing, no model involved.
- ✓ Says what it does "Improve your user experience with the Apache Solr search engine for your WordPress website."
- ! Has a FAQ Only 1 question in the FAQ; 3 or more gives an assistant something to match.
- ! FAQ asks real questions 0 of 1 FAQ entries are headings, not questions ("undefined").
- ! Names who it is for One audience phrase ("if you have"); say who the plugin is for and what they use it for.
- ✓ Names what it works with Mentions WP-CLI.
- ✓ Headings and lists 9 headings and 6 lists.
- ✓ Enough to quote 7,966 characters of description.
- ✓ Tags match the text All 1 tags appear in the text.
Growth timeline
Install-tier crossings we have observed, and how long each tier took to outgrow
- 2025-12-14 200+ → 100+ down after 1 days in tier
- 2025-12-13 100+ → 200+ up after 20 days in tier
- 2025-11-23 200+ → 100+ down after 28 days in tier
- 2025-10-26 100+ → 200+ up after 4 days in tier
- 2025-10-22 200+ → 100+ down after 1 days in tier
- 2025-10-21 100+ → 200+ up after 5 days in tier
- 2025-10-16 200+ → 100+ down after 2 days in tier
- 2025-10-14 100+ → 200+ up 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).
-
Search Regex 100K+ installs · 4.6★ · 1 shared tag A -
Relevanssi – A Better Search 100K+ installs · 4.7★ · 1 shared tag A -
Search & Replace 100K+ installs · 4.3★ · 1 shared tag C -
String locator 100K+ installs · 4.6★ · 1 shared tag A -
Ivory Search – WordPress Search Plugin 90K+ installs · 4.9★ · 1 shared tag A -
Ajax Search Lite – Live Search & Filter 70K+ installs · 4.7★ · 1 shared tag A
Embed this report card
Drop a live Pulse card for Solr Search for WordPress into a readme, a review or a deck. It updates itself.
<iframe src="https://plugins.wpmayor.com/embed/solr-power" width="480" height="300" style="border:0" loading="lazy" title="Solr Search for WordPress — Plugin Pulse"></iframe> Solr Search for WordPress: 100+ active installs, 4.0★ (2 reviews). Plugin Pulse (WP Mayor), as of 2026-10-31. https://plugins.wpmayor.com/plugin/solr-power
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