Virtual Media Folders
by Per Søderlind · AI
Also makes 10 other plugins · 610+ installs across the portfolio →
Virtual folder organization and intelligent management for the WordPress Media Library, without altering file locations on disk.
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 84/100
Few reviews
Active installs
300+
≈300 estimated
Momentum
-7%
downloads vs prior 30d
Biggest opportunity: Swap “ai”, “media” and “media library” for “virtual”, “media folders” and “folder”. “ai” isn't earning its slot: you're not in the first 24 results for its own search. “virtual” sits at #6 untagged, close enough for a declared tag to move it up. “media” isn't earning its slot: you're not in the first 24 results for its own search. “media folders” sits at #9 untagged, close enough for a declared tag to move it up. “media library” isn't earning its slot: you're not in the first 24 results for its own search. “folder” sits at #18 untagged, close enough for a declared tag to move it up. All five slots are taken, so one has to go.
84 health vs 77 average across 3,393 AI plugins
Install conversion
How it's measured →3.5%
of downloads still active
At least 300 of 8.5K lifetime downloads are still running, above its category: the median AI plugin keeps 1.4%, across 1,010 plugins.
Downloads count every update, not just first installs, so older and more frequently released plugins read lower. Compare against other AI 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 45 releases 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 6 days ago
Tested up to WordPress 7.1.4, the current branch or newer
5.0★ over 2 reviews, smoothed to 4.13★ and held back under 25 reviews
5 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.
50
Momentum
Holding steady
+0.6
Velocity
places per keyword, 27d
42%
Breadth
of keywords climbing, 27d
+0.7
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| virtual assistant | #1 | #9 | 0 |
| virtual folders | #2 | #12 | — |
| virtual | #6 | #19 | up 1 |
| folders your tag | #8 | #22 | 0 |
| media folders | #9 | #23 | down 1 |
| virtual library | #6 | #18 | — |
| folder | #18 | #23 | up 4 |
| real media folders | #9 | #24 | up 1 |
| media library organizer | #10 | #18 | up 1 |
| media folder | #11 | #23 | 0 |
| media organization | #12 | #22 | 0 |
| wordpress media folders | #13 | #24 | 0 |
| page folders | #18 | #24 | up 1 |
| media library folders | #20 | #23 | 0 |
| organize media library | #24 | #23 | down 1 |
| library folders | #22 | #24 | 0 |
| wordpress media library folders | #24 | #24 | down 2 |
| ai your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| media your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| media library your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| organization your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
63 searches this plugin appeared in over the last 90 days, 17 listed. 46 left out as unrelated or noise (years, numbers, stray words). 4 of its tags aren't in the top 24 for their own search.
What to do about it
- Swap “ai”, “media” and “media library” for “virtual”, “media folders” and “folder”. “ai” isn't earning its slot: you're not in the first 24 results for its own search. “virtual” sits at #6 untagged, close enough for a declared tag to move it up. “media” isn't earning its slot: you're not in the first 24 results for its own search. “media folders” sits at #9 untagged, close enough for a declared tag to move it up. “media library” isn't earning its slot: you're not in the first 24 results for its own search. “folder” sits at #18 untagged, close enough for a declared tag to move it up. All five slots are taken, so one has to go.
Daily downloads
Since 14 Dec 2025 · 322 days · wp.org + Plugin Pulse archive
30-day downloads
Rolling 30-day volume · peak 1.4K · peaks are release surges
Directory rank
Ranked about #10,100 to #11,100, alongside the other plugins at 300+ 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 1 Nov 2026.
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
Actively maintainedHow often this plugin actually ships. A steady rhythm is the maintenance signal a single "last updated" date can't show.
45
releases in the last 12 months
6d ago
latest release · v2.2.1 · 26 Oct 2026
45
tagged releases on record
Recent releases
What its installed base runs
via wordpress.orgShare of active installs on each version of this plugin. 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 “300+”. Our estimate pins where the real number sits.
Crossed into this band 9 days ago and a band this size takes about a year or more to cross, so the real count is still just over 300.
At the current install trend, crossing 400+ in roughly 99 days.
Install history since 18 Dec 2025
Recent reviews
All reviews on wp.org ↗- ★★★★★ Cleo38mo ago
Just what I needed! If you have a website with lots of photos or even a smaller website that has been around for years, you know how out of control the media library will get. This is a great solution. Easy to use, doesn’t weigh down your website with a huge system that feels like an operating system you didn’t need but now cannot get away from. Just a nice, lightweight organizational tool with no lock in. It helps me, my clients, and doesn’t bloat up my sites. Win for everyone! Thank you!
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ mzvvz11mo ago
Without complications, I ran a code analysis with AI, and it suggested that it’s a lightweight plugin that uses the WordPress internal API and the native taxonomy system, in addition to being up-to-date and very lightweight. It doesn’t have any fancy features or ads at the time of this review. You can download it without worry.
Read on wp.org ↗
Behavioral tests
via WP HiveAutomated install-time checks, tested on PHP 8.1.12 · WP 7.0.1
Languages
via translate.wordpress.orgTranslated into 1 language, 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
6 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 Short description names no action; say what the plugin does for the site.
- ✓ Has a FAQ 7 questions in the FAQ.
- ✓ FAQ asks real questions 7 of 7 read like questions a user would type.
- ! Names who it is for Never says who the plugin is for or what they use it for.
- ✓ Names what it works with Mentions Gutenberg, Block editor.
- ✓ Headings and lists 6 headings and 8 lists.
- ✓ Enough to quote 3,206 characters of description.
- ✓ Tags match the text All 5 tags appear in the text.
Growth timeline
Install-tier crossings we have observed, and how long each tier took to outgrow
- 2026-10-23 200+ → 300+ up after 105 days in tier
- 2026-07-10 100+ → 200+ up after 80 days in tier
- 2026-04-21 90+ → 100+ up after 1 days in tier
- 2026-04-20 100+ → 90+ down after 2 days in tier
- 2026-04-18 90+ → 100+ up after 6 days in tier
- 2026-04-12 50+ → 90+ up after 2 days in tier
- 2026-04-10 30+ → 50+ up after 5 days in tier
- 2026-04-05 20+ → 30+ up after 4 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).
-
Organize Media Folder 2K+ installs · 4.0★ · 3 shared tags B -
FileBird – WordPress Media Library Folders & File Manager 200K+ installs · 4.7★ · 2 shared tags A -
Media Cleaner: Delete Unused Images & Clean Your Media Library 90K+ installs · 4.6★ · 2 shared tags A -
Folders – Unlimited Folders to Organize Media Library Folder, Pages, Posts, File Manager 90K+ installs · 5.0★ · 2 shared tags A -
Media Library Assistant 70K+ installs · 4.8★ · 2 shared tags A -
Wicked Folders – Folder Organizer for Pages, Posts, and Custom Post Types 20K+ installs · 4.7★ · 2 shared tags A
Embed this report card
Drop a live Pulse card for Virtual Media Folders into a readme, a review or a deck. It updates itself.
<iframe src="https://plugins.wpmayor.com/embed/virtual-media-folders" width="480" height="300" style="border:0" loading="lazy" title="Virtual Media Folders — Plugin Pulse"></iframe> Virtual Media Folders: 300+ active installs, 5.0★ (2 reviews). Plugin Pulse (WP Mayor), as of 2026-11-01. https://plugins.wpmayor.com/plugin/virtual-media-folders
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