Easy External Links
by Jorge A. Gonzalez · SEO
Take control of external links in WordPress posts, pages & comments. Insert rel=external nofollow and target=_blank to all your external links.
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 50/100
Stale · Likely abandoned
Active installs
300+
≈350 estimated
Momentum
-5%
low volume, under 1,000 downloads a month
Biggest opportunity: “external”, “links” and “new tab” 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.
50 health vs 66 average across 2,241 SEO plugins
Install conversion
How it's measured →1.1%
of downloads still active
At least 300 of 28.5K lifetime downloads are still running, in line with its category: the median SEO plugin keeps 1.2%, across 1,198 plugins.
Downloads count every update, not just first installs, so older and more frequently released plugins read lower. Compare against other SEO 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 10+ years — the top precursor to removal once a vulnerability is found.
- Compatibility drift. Tested only up to WordPress 4.4.34, well behind 7.1.
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 3904 days ago, past the ~180 days where wp.org starts discounting
Tested up to WordPress 4.4.34; the current branch is 7.1
5.0★ over 16 reviews, weighted for review count to 4.3★ and held back under 25 reviews
5 of 5 tags set · short description in place
To rank higher: Last updated 3904 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| external your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| links your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| new tab your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| new window your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| seo 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
- “external”, “links” and “new tab” 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 · 1,491 days · wp.org + Plugin Pulse archive
30-day downloads
Rolling 30-day volume · peak 202 · 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.
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
10.7y ago
latest release · v2.2.3 · 25 Feb 2016
13
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 7 months ago; the previous band took 14 months to cross, which places it about 51% of the way through.
Install history since 1 Apr 2015
Recent reviews
All reviews on wp.org ↗- ★★★★★ Blogueiros do Brasil9.0y ago
Plugin muito bom. É exatamente o que eu precisava.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ WebFactory10.1y ago
Install, activate, configure, forget. Works really well!
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ StudioWebB10.2y ago
Very easy to setup and works like a charm. I’d like to be able to set icon for internal links too. This plugin let you to setup only external links.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ Dave Henniker10.4y ago
Easy to use. Surprised this feature had to be added – but it was easy to implement. Grateful thanks.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ argosmedia10.6y ago
Veryhandy little plugin. It works as expected, and has some nice extra bonusses and options. Thank you!
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ Bjarne Oldrup10.6y ago
Easy External Links does exactly what I need, shows a small icon next to external links, making it clear to the visitor that the link opens up an external website in a new tab. This could be done manually, but Easy External Links just makes it a lot easier 😉 Hoping for a WordPress 4.5 tested update in the near feature.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ Earnie Rhyker10.7y ago
exceeds expectations (over other plugins doing the same thing) with great customisable icons and more specific options (link configuring links for comments and excerpts)
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ allagringaus10.8y ago
all perfect! THANKS!
Read on wp.org ↗
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.
This plugin’s searches fall outside the topics measured so far. See the topics measured so far.
Readme readiness
2 of 8 pass · checked 29 Oct 2026Can an assistant quote this readme? Eight deterministic checks over the wp.org listing, no model involved.
- ✓ Says what it does "Take control of external links in WordPress posts, pages & comments. Insert rel=external nofollow and targe..."
- ! 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 Names no plugin, service or platform it works with.
- ! Headings and lists 1 heading and 1 list; assistants quote headed sections and bullet lists, not paragraphs.
- ! Enough to quote 662 characters of description; under 1,000 there is little to quote.
- ✓ Tags match the text 4 of 5 tags appear in the text; "new window" does not.
Growth timeline
Install-tier crossings we have observed, and how long each tier took to outgrow
- 2026-04-11 400+ → 300+ down after 424 days in tier
- 2025-02-11 500+ → 400+ down after 361 days in tier
- 2024-02-16 600+ → 500+ down after 198 days in tier
- 2023-08-02 700+ → 600+ down after 151 days in tier
- 2023-03-04 800+ → 700+ down after 151 days in tier
- 2022-10-04 1K+ → 800+ down after 668 days in tier
- 2020-12-05 2K+ → 1K+ down after 1234 days in tier
- 2017-07-20 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).
-
External Links in New Window / New Tab 30K+ installs · 4.4★ · 3 shared tags A -
LuckyWP Table of Contents 90K+ installs · 4.9★ · 2 shared tags B -
External Links – nofollow, noopener & new window 80K+ installs · 4.3★ · 2 shared tags A -
Link Whisper Free 30K+ installs · 4.1★ · 2 shared tags B -
Title and Nofollow For Links (Classic Editor) 10K+ installs · 4.3★ · 2 shared tags A -
Events Tracker for Elementor 9K+ installs · 4.4★ · 2 shared tags C
Embed this report card
Drop a live Pulse card for Easy External Links into a readme, a review or a deck. It updates itself.
<iframe src="https://plugins.wpmayor.com/embed/wp-links" width="480" height="300" style="border:0" loading="lazy" title="Easy External Links — Plugin Pulse"></iframe> Easy External Links: 300+ active installs, 5.0★ (16 reviews). Plugin Pulse (WP Mayor), as of 2026-11-03. https://plugins.wpmayor.com/plugin/wp-links
Spotted a number that looks wrong? Report a data issue and we'll check it against the source.