Swap Google Fonts Display: Improve Font Rendering & Performance
by Gijo Varghese · Uncategorized
Also makes 5 other plugins · 66.6K+ installs across the portfolio →
Ensure text remains visible during webfont load, reduce FOUT, and improve performance for a smoother user experience.
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 81/100
no flags
Active installs
10K+
≈19K estimated
Momentum
+33%
downloads vs prior 30d
Biggest opportunity: Add “google web fonts”, “google webfonts” and “webfont” to your wp.org tags. You rank #4, #4 and #4 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.
81 health vs 58 average across 25,739 Uncategorized plugins
Install conversion
How it's measured →7.2%
of downloads still active
At least 10K of 138.6K 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.
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.
Excellent listing optimization
Most to gain: Rating quality
Updated 165 days ago
Tested up to WordPress 7.0.8, the current branch or newer
4.4★ over 13 reviews, smoothed to 4.16★ 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.
35
Momentum
Losing ground
-0.3
Velocity
places per keyword, 28d
11%
Breadth
of keywords climbing, 28d
-0.1
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| swap | #1 | #1 | 0 |
| display swap your tag | #1 | #2 | 0 |
| webfont load | #2 | #4 | 0 |
| rendering | #3 | #8 | 0 |
| web font your tag | #4 | #8 | down 1 |
| webfont | #4 | #7 | down 1 |
| google webfont loader | #2 | #2 | 0 |
| google web fonts | #4 | #10 | 0 |
| google webfonts | #4 | #5 | down 2 |
| webfonts | #4 | #5 | down 1 |
| google fonts your tag | #8 | #19 | down 3 |
| display | #9 | #13 | down 2 |
| font | #10 | #17 | down 1 |
| inject | #6 | #12 | 0 |
| improve performance | #10 | #21 | 0 |
| google webfont | #4 | #6 | 0 |
| improve | #14 | #23 | 0 |
| fonts your tag | #17 | #20 | down 2 |
| google font | #6 | #13 | 0 |
| custom font | #14 | #20 | down 1 |
39 searches this plugin appeared in over the last 90 days, 20 listed. 14 left out as unrelated or noise (years, numbers, stray words).
What to do about it
- Add “google web fonts”, “google webfonts” and “webfont” to your wp.org tags. You rank #4, #4 and #4 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 2.3K · 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
6mo ago
latest release · v1.1.1 · 20 May 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 · 96% 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 5.7 years ago; a band this size takes about a year or more to cross, which places it about 90% of the way through.
Install history since 10 Dec 2019
Latest updates
via wp.org changelogRecent releases and news for this plugin
- — Version 1.1.1 Minor updates 1.1.1
- — Version 1.1.0 New: Support for Google Fonts v2 1.1.0
- — Version 1.0.6 Bug fixes while using W3 Total Cache Bug fixes while using custom wp-includes folder 1.0.6
- — Version 1.0.5 Support for W3 Total Cache 1.0.5
- — Version 1.0.4 Automatically add font-display:swap to all css files when using LiteSpeed cache 1.0.4
- — Version 1.0.3 Checks entire HTML for Google Fonts (previously only) 1.0.3
Behavioral tests
via WP HiveAutomated install-time checks, tested on PHP 7.4.8 · WP 6.0.1
Languages
via translate.wordpress.orgTranslated into 4 languages, 2 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
4 of 8 pass · checked 26 Oct 2026Can an assistant quote this readme? Eight deterministic checks over the wp.org listing, no model involved.
- ✓ Says what it does "Ensure text remains visible during webfont load, reduce FOUT, and improve performance for a smoother user e..."
- ! 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 Mentions Facebook.
- ✓ Headings and lists 4 headings and 4 lists.
- ! Enough to quote 270 characters of description; under 1,000 there is little to quote.
- ✓ Tags match the text 2 of 4 tags appear in the text; "display swap", "web font" do not.
Growth timeline
Install-tier crossings we have observed, and how long each tier took to outgrow
- 2021-02-27 9K+ → 10K+ up after 125 days in tier
- 2020-10-25 2K+ → 9K+ up after 286 days in tier
- 2020-01-13 1K+ → 2K+ 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 Fonts – Host Your Fonts Locally 400K+ installs · 4.3★ · 2 shared tags A -
Fonts Plugin | Google Fonts, Adobe Fonts & Upload Fonts 200K+ installs · 4.9★ · 2 shared tags A -
Fonts 8K+ installs · 4.3★ · 2 shared tags B -
Wbcom Designs – Custom Font Uploader 3K+ installs · 3.8★ · 2 shared tags C -
TK Google Fonts 1K+ installs · 4.2★ · 2 shared tags A -
Flying Fonts: Remove Google Fonts & Use System Fonts for Faster Performance 600+ installs · 4.0★ · 2 shared tags B
Embed this report card
Drop a live Pulse card for Swap Google Fonts Display: Improve Font Rendering & Performance into a readme, a review or a deck. It updates itself.
<iframe src="https://plugins.wpmayor.com/embed/swap-google-font-display" width="480" height="300" style="border:0" loading="lazy" title="Swap Google Fonts Display: Improve Font Rendering & Performance — Plugin Pulse"></iframe> Swap Google Fonts Display: Improve Font Rendering & Performance: 10K+ active installs, 4.4★ (13 reviews). Plugin Pulse (WP Mayor), as of 2026-11-01. https://plugins.wpmayor.com/plugin/swap-google-font-display
Spotted a number that looks wrong? Report a data issue and we'll check it against the source.