Vanilla PDF Embed
by Mike Doherty · Uncategorized
Embeds PDFs in your pages and posts, without using JS.
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 49/100
Stale · Likely abandoned
Active installs
3K+
≈3.5K estimated
Momentum
+14%
downloads vs prior 30d
Biggest opportunity: “embed” and “pdf” 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.
49 health vs 58 average across 25,736 Uncategorized plugins
Install conversion
How it's measured →3.0%
of downloads still active
At least 3K of 101.6K lifetime downloads are still running, above its category: the median Uncategorized plugin keeps 0.6%, across 17,765 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 9+ years — the top precursor to removal once a vulnerability is found.
- Compatibility drift. Tested only up to WordPress 4.5.0, 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 3644 days ago, past the ~180 days where wp.org starts discounting
Tested up to WordPress 4.5.0; the current branch is 6.8
4.6★ over 32 reviews, smoothed to 4.30★
2 of 5 tags set · short description in place
To rank higher: Last updated 3644 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| embed your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| pdf your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
2 searches this plugin appeared in over the last 90 days, 0 listed. 2 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
- “embed” and “pdf” 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 · 1,488 days · wp.org + Plugin Pulse archive
30-day downloads
Rolling 30-day volume · peak 466 · 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
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.
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 “3K+”. Our estimate pins where the real number sits.
Crossed into this band 7 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 26 Jul 2018
Recent reviews
All reviews on wp.org ↗- ★★★★★ Martin Sauter6.9y ago
Converts the URL of a PDF document automatically in to an embedded PDF. Very easy to use, very nice result.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ indianplayschools8.3y ago
Just paste the link to pdf file on the same domain and you can view it just as pdf and not a link. This is what I was looking for. The best plugin to view the pdf. You can download and print too. Thank you very much
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ clasherplayer8.4y ago
There was no embedding; only the link to the PDF file was placed. I think that this plugin has not been updated as of the time of writing.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ joey404010.4y ago
Doesn’t work on Latest Chrome or Firefox
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ swampy10.6y ago
Doesn’t embed it all, just inserts a link to download the pdf
Read on wp.org ↗ - Read on wp.org ↗★★★★★ Zeshan Ahmed10.7y ago
- ★★★★★ jberk12410.7y ago
Best free PDF plugin you can get. Has exactly what you need: -inputtable pdf -easy navigation -download/save options -flawlessly embeds PDF, ***GET THIS, WORKED PERFECTLY FOR MY SITE***
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ alver10.8y ago
YEAH! Its work!
Read on wp.org ↗
Latest updates
via wp.org changelogRecent releases and news for this plugin
- — Version 0.0.8 Add the ability to set PDF open params 0.0.8
- — Version 0.0.7 Fix a couple corner cases – thanks AngelinaBelle! 0.0.7
- — Version 0.0.6 Set a default height of 500em 0.0.6
- — Version 0.0.5 Fix a simple programming error; thanks to firedog341 for the report 0.0.5
- — Version 0.0.4 By default, use a 100% width embed frame Expanded readme 0.0.4
- — Version 0.0.3 Embed PDFs on attachment pages Fix a spacing issue for PDFs with no title Don’t use PDF open parameters for the fallback link 0.0.3
Behavioral tests
via WP HiveAutomated install-time checks, tested on PHP 7.2.16 · WP 5.3
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 28 Oct 2026Can an assistant quote this readme? Eight deterministic checks over the wp.org listing, no model involved.
- ✓ Says what it does "Embeds PDFs in your pages and posts, without using JS."
- ! Has a FAQ No FAQ section.
- ! FAQ asks real questions No FAQ to judge.
- ! Names who it is for One audience phrase ("if you need"); say who the plugin is for and what they use it for.
- ! Names what it works with Names no plugin, service or platform it works with.
- ✓ Headings and lists 11 headings and 1 list.
- ✓ Enough to quote 4,033 characters of description.
- ✓ Tags match the text All 2 tags appear in the text.
Growth timeline
Install-tier crossings we have observed, and how long each tier took to outgrow
- 2026-03-21 4K+ → 3K+ down after 7 days in tier
- 2026-03-14 3K+ → 4K+ up after 1 days in tier
- 2026-03-13 4K+ → 3K+ down after 1 days in tier
- 2026-03-12 3K+ → 4K+ up after 12 days in tier
- 2026-02-28 4K+ → 3K+ down after 2 days in tier
- 2026-02-26 3K+ → 4K+ up after 2 days in tier
- 2026-02-24 4K+ → 3K+ down after 424 days in tier
- 2024-12-27 5K+ → 4K+ down 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).
-
PDF.js Viewer 20K+ installs · 4.3★ · 2 shared tags A -
Embed PDF Viewer 20K+ installs · 4.4★ · 2 shared tags A -
PDF viewer for Elementor & Gutenberg 10K+ installs · 4.1★ · 2 shared tags B -
Embedly 2K+ installs · 3.6★ · 2 shared tags B - R RV Embed PDF 800+ installs · 3.8★ · 2 shared tags D
- S Scribd Doc Embedder 200+ installs · 3.9★ · 2 shared tags D
Embed this report card
Drop a live Pulse card for Vanilla PDF Embed into a readme, a review or a deck. It updates itself.
<iframe src="https://plugins.wpmayor.com/embed/vanilla-pdf-embed" width="480" height="300" style="border:0" loading="lazy" title="Vanilla PDF Embed — Plugin Pulse"></iframe> Vanilla PDF Embed: 3K+ active installs, 4.6★ (32 reviews). Plugin Pulse (WP Mayor), as of 2026-10-31. https://plugins.wpmayor.com/plugin/vanilla-pdf-embed
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