Starbox – the Author Box for Humans
by SEO Squirrly · Login & Users
Also makes 2 other plugins · 40K+ installs across the portfolio →
Starbox is the Author Box for Humans. Professional Themes to choose from, HTML5, Social Media Profiles, Google Authorship
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Health
C 68/100
Stale
Active installs
10K+
≈15K estimated
Momentum
-4%
downloads vs prior 30d
Biggest opportunity: Swap “author”, “users” and “multiple authors” for “google authorship”, “authorship” and “humans”. “author” isn't earning its slot: you're not in the first 24 results for its own search. “google authorship” sits at #4 untagged, close enough for a declared tag to move it up. “users” isn't earning its slot: you're not in the first 24 results for its own search. “authorship” sits at #6 untagged, close enough for a declared tag to move it up. “multiple authors” isn't earning its slot: it only gets you to #24. “humans” sits at #7 untagged, close enough for a declared tag to move it up. All five slots are taken, so one has to go.
68 health vs 61 average across 2,204 Login & Users plugins
Install conversion
How it's measured →1.9%
of downloads still active
At least 10K of 525.4K lifetime downloads are still running, above its category: the median Login & Users plugin keeps 0.7%, across 1,476 plugins.
Downloads count every update, not just first installs, so older and more frequently released plugins read lower. Compare against other Login & Users 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.
Well optimized
Most to gain: Support resolution
Updated 541 days ago, past the ~180 days where wp.org starts discounting
Tested up to WordPress 6.8.12, the current branch or newer
4.5★ over 203 reviews, smoothed to 4.42★
5 of 5 tags set · short description in place
0 of 1 support threads resolved in the last 2 months
To rank higher: Mark more forum threads resolved — the resolved ratio feeds the ranking.
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
-0.7
Velocity
places per keyword, 27d
4%
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.
| Keyword | wp.org | On merit | wp.org move, 90 days |
|---|---|---|---|
| google authorship | #4 | #2 | 0 |
| humans | #7 | #7 | 0 |
| authorship | #6 | #2 | down 1 |
| author box your tag | #17 | #10 | down 2 |
| author bio your tag | #17 | #8 | 0 |
| multiple authors your tag | #24 | #16 | down 4 |
| bio box | #17 | #13 | up 1 |
| author meta box | #21 | #14 | down 1 |
| wordpress author bio | #21 | #10 | — |
| about author box | #23 | #17 | down 1 |
| author your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| users your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
32 searches this plugin appeared in over the last 90 days, 10 listed. 22 left out as unrelated or noise (years, numbers, stray words). 2 of its tags aren't in the top 24 for their own search.
What to do about it
- Swap “author”, “users” and “multiple authors” for “google authorship”, “authorship” and “humans”. “author” isn't earning its slot: you're not in the first 24 results for its own search. “google authorship” sits at #4 untagged, close enough for a declared tag to move it up. “users” isn't earning its slot: you're not in the first 24 results for its own search. “authorship” sits at #6 untagged, close enough for a declared tag to move it up. “multiple authors” isn't earning its slot: it only gets you to #24. “humans” sits at #7 untagged, close enough for a declared tag to move it up. All five slots are taken, so one has to go.
Daily downloads
Since 5 Oct 2022 · 1,489 days · wp.org + Plugin Pulse archive
30-day downloads
Rolling 30-day volume · peak 16.2K · 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
1.5y ago
latest release · v3.5.4 · 9 May 2025
5
tagged releases on record
Recent releases
What its installed base runs
via wordpress.orgShare of active installs on each version of this plugin · 86% 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 19 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 14 Aug 2020
Recent reviews
All reviews on wp.org ↗- ★★★★★ onico03.4y ago
I love that plugin, but I’ll probably have to switch to another solution since I’d like to go multilingual. Unfortunately, Starbox doesn’t seem to be compatible with WPML. That’s unfortunate for Starbox lovers.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ Maxime_133.6y ago
Pleasant and efficient. Many thanks to the developers. Works well with php 8.1 and wp 6.2. Better than other free plugins 😉
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ ivanbel4.4y ago
Fisrt time that I see such a simple plugin to use, very convenient and easy for the settings. But the support is fantastic. I wanted to tweak a little bit, and immediately I received all the solutions. Bravo !
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ sferwerda4.6y ago
Simple but great plugin
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ madeinperpi4.6y ago
Easy to install and to take in hands, step by step
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ tilkesh4.8y ago
nice plugin it’s working awesome with other plugins even without conflict.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ Marc-Oliver Pahl5.3y ago
I love it. The new in blog text feature for “[starbox]” is wonderful. I give you the strong recommendation to filte out ” (quotation marks) as I spent several hours that you are not allowing this embedding id=”1,fa,23″ as your preg_split results in “1 | fa | 23” and finally only fa is shown as it is the only that mathces with a user id…. Besides that, great!!!
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ ichadwick5.6y ago
Nice little upgrade to the way author information is presented. Very neat and clean presentation. The “latest posts” tab is very welcome. Thanks for this work. Very good and fast responses to support issues. Faster than about 90% of the plugins I’ve installed. That’s a nice change. Will look at what the pro version offers and likely upgrade (I only have one author on my blog) because adding more “latest posts” will be a welcome benefit. Works in WP 5.7.1 and had no issues integrating with Verbosa theme.
Read on wp.org ↗
Latest updates
via wp.org changelogRecent releases and news for this plugin
- — Version 3.5.4 Update the social sanitization Update compatibility with WP 6.8 3.5.4
- — Version 3.5.3 Update the social URL validation Change call to static in tools Add the option to remove Posts from Sitemap News in Google News Add the option to set SEO Automation for each language with WPML plugin 3.5.3
- — Version 3.5.2 Update plugin style and layouts Fixed compatibility with default WP Themes like Twenty Twenty-Four 3.5.2
- — Version 3.5.1 Update compatibility with WP 6.5 Fixed PHP error when $post is not found 3.5.1
- — Version 3.5.0 Update security on User setting Fixed Small Bugs 3.5.0
- — Version 3.4.8 Update compatibility with PHP 8.3 Update compatibility with WP 6.4.1 3.4.8
Security history
via Wordfence IntelligenceAll 6 disclosed vulnerabilities are patched in the current version (3.5.4). Sites still on an older version should update.
- Patched Medium · 6.4 Starbox <= 3.5.3 - Authenticated (Contributor+) Stored Cross-Site Scripting via Twitter URL Field ↗2024-09-09 CVE-2024-8239 Improper Neutralization of Input During Web Page Generation Affects <= 3.5.2 Patched in 3.5.3
- Patched Medium · 4.4 Starbox – the Author Box for Humans <= 3.5.1 - Authenticated (Admin+) Stored Cross-Site Scripting ↗2024-08-20 CVE-2024-7955 Improper Neutralization of Input During Web Page Generation Affects <= 3.5.1 Patched in 3.5.2
- 2024-02-13 CVE-2024-1273 Improper Neutralization of Input During Web Page Generation Affects <= 3.4.9 Patched in 3.5.0
- Patched Medium · 6.4 Starbox <= 3.4.8 - Authenticated (Subscriber+) Stored Cross-Site Scripting via Job Settings ↗2024-02-06 CVE-2023-6806 Improper Neutralization of Input During Web Page Generation Affects <= 3.4.8 Patched in 3.5.0
- Patched Medium · 6.4 Starbox <= 3.4.8 - Authenticated (Subscriber+) Stored Cross-Site Scripting via Profile Display Name and Social Settings ↗2024-01-31 CVE-2024-0256 Improper Neutralization of Input During Web Page Generation Affects <= 3.4.8 Patched in 3.5.0
- Patched Medium · 4.3 Starbox – the Author Box for Humans <= 3.4.7 - Insecure Direct Object Reference ↗
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 8.1.12 · WP 6.8.1
Languages
via translate.wordpress.orgTranslated into 88 languages, 4 at 90% or more · development strings
Plus 64 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
6 of 8 pass · checked 25 Oct 2026Can an assistant quote this readme? Eight deterministic checks over the wp.org listing, no model involved.
- ! Says what it does Short description names no action; say what the plugin does for the site.
- ✓ Has a FAQ 6 questions in the FAQ.
- ✓ FAQ asks real questions 6 of 6 read like questions a user would type.
- ✓ Names who it is for Names its audience or use cases ("if you want", "if you have", "built for").
- ✓ Names what it works with Mentions WooCommerce, Instagram, Facebook, YouTube and 4 more.
- ! Headings and lists 0 headings and 2 lists; assistants quote headed sections and bullet lists, not paragraphs.
- ✓ Enough to quote 4,915 characters of description.
- ✓ Tags match the text 4 of 5 tags appear in the text; "multiple authors" does not.
Growth timeline
Install-tier crossings we have observed, and how long each tier took to outgrow
- 2025-04-17 20K+ → 10K+ down after 49 days in tier
- 2025-02-27 30K+ → 20K+ down after 7 days in tier
- 2025-02-20 40K+ → 30K+ down after 2 days in tier
- 2025-02-18 30K+ → 40K+ up after 1 days in tier
- 2025-02-17 40K+ → 30K+ down after 6 days in tier
- 2025-02-11 30K+ → 40K+ up after 1 days in tier
- 2025-02-10 40K+ → 30K+ down after 4 days in tier
- 2025-02-06 30K+ → 40K+ 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).
-
Molongui Authorship – Author Boxes, Guest Authors & Co-Authors for WordPress 10K+ installs · 4.6★ · 3 shared tags A -
Authorsy – Author Box, Multiple Authors, Guest Authors & Post Rating 1K+ installs · 3.6★ · 3 shared tags -
Author Box WP Lens 900+ installs · 4.5★ · 3 shared tags A -
Simple Author Box 90K+ installs · 4.2★ · 2 shared tags A -
Co-Authors, Multiple Authors and Guest Authors in an Author Box with PublishPress Authors 20K+ installs · 4.8★ · 2 shared tags A -
Co-Authors Plus 20K+ installs · 3.5★ · 2 shared tags B
Embed this report card
Drop a live Pulse card for Starbox – the Author Box for Humans into a readme, a review or a deck. It updates itself.
<iframe src="https://plugins.wpmayor.com/embed/starbox" width="480" height="300" style="border:0" loading="lazy" title="Starbox – the Author Box for Humans — Plugin Pulse"></iframe> Starbox – the Author Box for Humans: 10K+ active installs, 4.5★ (203 reviews). Plugin Pulse (WP Mayor), as of 2026-11-01. https://plugins.wpmayor.com/plugin/starbox
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