WP Custom Admin Bar
by Wes Todd · Admin & Utilities
Also makes 1 other plugin · 310+ installs across the portfolio →
A really simple and easy to use plugin to help gain control of the new Admin Bar.
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 45/100
Stale · Likely abandoned · Few reviews
Active installs
300+
≈400 estimated
Momentum
0%
downloads vs prior 30d
Biggest opportunity: “admin bar”, “customize admin bar” and “hide” 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.
45 health vs 56 average across 5,896 Admin & Utilities plugins
Install conversion
How it's measured →0.6%
of downloads still active
At least 300 of 51.9K lifetime downloads are still running, in line with its category: the median Admin & Utilities plugin keeps 0.6%, across 4,189 plugins.
Downloads count every update, not just first installs, so older and more frequently released plugins read lower. Compare against other Admin & Utilities 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 14+ years — the top precursor to removal once a vulnerability is found.
- Compatibility drift. Tested only up to WordPress 3.3.2, 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 5363 days ago, past the ~180 days where wp.org starts discounting
Tested up to WordPress 3.3.2; the current branch is 6.8
4.2★ over 5 reviews, smoothed to 4.11★ and held back under 25 reviews
5 of 5 tags set · short description in place
To rank higher: Last updated 5363 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| admin bar your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| customize admin bar your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| hide your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| removal your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| user controls your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
0 searches this plugin appeared in over the last 90 days. 5 of its tags aren't in the top 24 for their own search.
What to do about it
- “admin bar”, “customize admin bar” and “hide” 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 173 · 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
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
14.7y ago
latest release · v1.3.5 · 25 Feb 2012
2
tagged releases on record
Recent releases
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 “300+”. Our estimate pins where the real number sits.
Crossed into this band 8 days ago and a band this size takes about a year or more to cross, so the real count is still just under 400.
Install history since 29 Aug 2016
Recent reviews
All reviews on wp.org ↗- ★★★★★ copperfox12.9y ago
works fine
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ graphicken713.1y ago
this is cool because you can modify the admin bar easily, and/or turn it off, and choose by userlevel who sees it. best admin bar plugin ever, thanks
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ paradiselost7913.2y ago
Using multisite, and would have loved this to do what it says. The css is just about impossible to understand and very little help
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ mannuforall13.5y ago
Its nice and useful on many case.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ Antonu13.8y ago
Perfect for my case
Read on wp.org ↗
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
3 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 "A really simple and easy to use plugin to help gain control of the new Admin Bar."
- ✓ Has a FAQ 3 questions in the FAQ.
- ✓ FAQ asks real questions 3 of 3 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 Names no plugin, service or platform it works with.
- ! Headings and lists 1 heading and 0 lists; assistants quote headed sections and bullet lists, not paragraphs.
- ! Enough to quote 435 characters of description; under 1,000 there is little to quote.
- ! Tags match the text Only 1 of 5 tags appear in the text ("Customize Admin Bar", "hide", "removal", "User Controls" missing).
Growth timeline
Install-tier crossings we have observed, and how long each tier took to outgrow
- 2026-10-24 400+ → 300+ down after 12 days in tier
- 2026-10-12 300+ → 400+ up after 27 days in tier
- 2026-09-15 400+ → 300+ down after 431 days in tier
- 2025-07-11 500+ → 400+ down after 319 days in tier
- 2024-08-26 600+ → 500+ down after 187 days in tier
- 2024-02-21 700+ → 600+ down after 11 days in tier
- 2024-02-10 600+ → 700+ up after 1 days in tier
- 2024-02-09 700+ → 600+ down after 7 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).
-
Hide Admin Bar 20K+ installs · 4.3★ · 2 shared tags B -
Auto Hide Admin Bar 3K+ installs · 4.6★ · 2 shared tags A - W WP Hide Dashboard 2K+ installs · 4.6★ · 2 shared tags D
-
Remove/Hide Admin Toolbar 500+ installs · 4.4★ · 2 shared tags D - W WP MiniBar 200+ installs · 4.0★ · 2 shared tags D
-
Hide Front End WP Admin Bar 100+ installs · 4.1★ · 2 shared tags C
Embed this report card
Drop a live Pulse card for WP Custom Admin Bar into a readme, a review or a deck. It updates itself.
<iframe src="https://plugins.wpmayor.com/embed/wp-custom-admin-bar" width="480" height="300" style="border:0" loading="lazy" title="WP Custom Admin Bar — Plugin Pulse"></iframe> WP Custom Admin Bar: 300+ active installs, 4.2★ (5 reviews). Plugin Pulse (WP Mayor), as of 2026-11-01. https://plugins.wpmayor.com/plugin/wp-custom-admin-bar
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