Playlist Player for YouTube – Fast, Privacy-Friendly Playlists & Channel Feed
by Ciprian Popescu · Media
Also makes 8 other plugins · 2.7K+ installs across the portfolio →
For bloggers and businesses who want YouTube playlists and channel feeds that load fast and only contact YouTube when visitors press play.
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
A 89/100
no flags
Active installs
1K+
≈1.9K estimated
Momentum
+104%
downloads vs prior 30d
Biggest opportunity: Swap “lazy load”, “video” and “youtube” for “playlists”, “youtube player” and “flash player”. “lazy load” isn't earning its slot: you're not in the first 24 results for its own search. “playlists” sits at #4 untagged, close enough for a declared tag to move it up. “video” isn't earning its slot: you're not in the first 24 results for its own search. “youtube player” sits at #5 untagged, close enough for a declared tag to move it up. “youtube” isn't earning its slot: it only gets you to #17. “flash player” sits at #6 untagged, close enough for a declared tag to move it up. All five slots are taken, so one has to go.
89 health vs 62 average across 3,286 Media plugins
Install conversion
How it's measured →1.3%
of downloads still active
At least 1K of 75.6K lifetime downloads are still running, above its category: the median Media plugin keeps 0.8%, across 2,321 plugins.
Downloads count every update, not just first installs, so older and more frequently released plugins read lower. Compare against other Media 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 5 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 23 days ago
Tested up to WordPress 7.1.4, the current branch or newer
4.8★ over 13 reviews, smoothed to 4.24★ 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.
39
Momentum
Losing ground
-0.2
Velocity
places per keyword, 28d
21%
Breadth
of keywords climbing, 28d
-0.2
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| playlist your tag | #3 | #3 | down 1 |
| playlists | #4 | #7 | up 3 |
| youtube playlist | #3 | #5 | 0 |
| channel feed your tag | #6 | #13 | 0 |
| youtube playlists | #6 | #10 | 0 |
| youtube player | #5 | #11 | down 3 |
| flash player | #6 | #12 | 0 |
| privacy friendly | #12 | #19 | 0 |
| player with playlist | #4 | #9 | 0 |
| youtube channel | #8 | #15 | up 1 |
| channel | #14 | #16 | 0 |
| youtube shorts | #10 | #13 | 0 |
| youtube your tag | #17 | #21 | down 2 |
| video playlist | #11 | #13 | down 2 |
| player | #19 | #17 | up 1 |
| youtube channel feed | #7 | #13 | 0 |
| youtube embed | #17 | #16 | 0 |
| youtube playlist gallery | #10 | #13 | 0 |
| play | #24 | #21 | down 2 |
| youtube shortcode | #18 | #22 | 0 |
| lazy load your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| video your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
71 searches this plugin appeared in over the last 90 days, 20 listed. 39 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
- Swap “lazy load”, “video” and “youtube” for “playlists”, “youtube player” and “flash player”. “lazy load” isn't earning its slot: you're not in the first 24 results for its own search. “playlists” sits at #4 untagged, close enough for a declared tag to move it up. “video” isn't earning its slot: you're not in the first 24 results for its own search. “youtube player” sits at #5 untagged, close enough for a declared tag to move it up. “youtube” isn't earning its slot: it only gets you to #17. “flash player” sits at #6 untagged, close enough for a declared tag to move it up. All five slots are taken, so one has to go.
Daily downloads
Since 5 Oct 2022 · 1,489 days · wp.org + Plugin Pulse archive
30-day downloads
Rolling 30-day volume · peak 2.4K · 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
Actively maintainedHow often this plugin actually ships. A steady rhythm is the maintenance signal a single "last updated" date can't show.
5
releases in the last 12 months
23d ago
latest release · v4.9.0 · 9 Oct 2026
5
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 “1K+”. Our estimate pins where the real number sits.
Crossed into this band 48 days ago and a band this size takes about a year or more to cross, so the real count is still just under 2K.
Install history since 6 Sep 2015
Latest updates
via wp.org changelogRecent releases and news for this plugin
- — Version 4.8.2 UPDATE: Tested up to WordPress 7.1 DOCS: Add WordPress Plugins directory link 4.8.2
- — Version 4.8.1 FIX: Prevent caching of empty API responses to avoid persistent blank channel feeds FIX: Send Referer header with YouTube API requests for compatibility with referrer-restricted API keys 4.8.1
- — Version 4.8.0 PERFORMANCE: Cache YouTube API responses using transients to avoid API calls on every page load PERFORMANCE: Replace file_get_contents() with wp_remote_get() for remote API requests PERFORMANCE: Remove admin stylesheet a 4.8.0
- — Version 4.7.4 FIX: Add referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" to YouTube iframes to ensure HTTP Referer is sent per YouTube embedded player requirements UPDATE: Update WordPress compatibility 4.7.4
- — Version 4.7.3 UPDATE: Update WordPress compatibility 4.7.3
- — Version 4.7.2 UPDATE: Update WordPress compatibility SECURITY: Increase plugin security by sanitizing and unslashing options 4.7.2
Security history
via Wordfence IntelligenceAll 2 disclosed vulnerabilities are patched in the current version (4.9.0). Sites still on an older version should update.
- Patched Medium · 6.4 YouTube Playlist Player <= 4.6.7 - Authenticated (Contributor+) Stored Cross-Site Scripting ↗2023-10-03 CVE-2023-45049 Improper Neutralization of Input During Web Page Generation Affects <= 4.6.7 Patched in 4.6.8
- Patched Medium · 4.3 YouTube Playlist Player <= 4.6.4 - Cross-Site Request Forgery in ytpp_settings ↗
Vulnerability records provided by Wordfence Intelligence. Copyright 2012-2026 Defiant Inc. License and terms.
CVE records: Copyright 1999-2026 The MITRE Corporation. CVE terms of use.
Languages
via translate.wordpress.orgTranslated into 2 languages, 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
4 of 8 pass · checked 27 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 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 Gravity Forms, YouTube.
- ✓ Headings and lists 5 headings and 3 lists.
- ✓ Enough to quote 2,460 characters of description.
- ✓ Tags match the text 4 of 5 tags appear in the text; "lazy load" does not.
Growth timeline
Install-tier crossings we have observed, and how long each tier took to outgrow
- 2026-09-14 2K+ → 1K+ down after 1 days in tier
- 2026-09-13 1K+ → 2K+ up after 1 days in tier
- 2026-09-12 2K+ → 1K+ down after 3 days in tier
- 2026-09-09 1K+ → 2K+ up after 4 days in tier
- 2026-09-05 2K+ → 1K+ down after 1 days in tier
- 2026-09-04 1K+ → 2K+ up after 13 days in tier
- 2026-08-22 2K+ → 1K+ down after 1 days in tier
- 2026-08-21 1K+ → 2K+ up 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).
-
WP YouTube Lyte 20K+ installs · 4.7★ · 3 shared tags A -
My YouTube Channel 5K+ installs · 4.3★ · 3 shared tags C -
Meks Video Importer 1K+ installs · 4.4★ · 3 shared tags C -
Youtube Playlist Thumbs 100+ installs · 4.5★ · 3 shared tags D -
Embed Plus for YouTube Gallery, Livestream and Lazy Loading with Facades 100K+ installs · 4.6★ · 2 shared tags A -
Presto Player 100K+ installs · 4.8★ · 2 shared tags A
Embed this report card
Drop a live Pulse card for Playlist Player for YouTube – Fast, Privacy-Friendly Playlists & Channel Feed into a readme, a review or a deck. It updates itself.
<iframe src="https://plugins.wpmayor.com/embed/youtube-playlist-player" width="480" height="300" style="border:0" loading="lazy" title="Playlist Player for YouTube – Fast, Privacy-Friendly Playlists & Channel Feed — Plugin Pulse"></iframe> Playlist Player for YouTube – Fast, Privacy-Friendly Playlists & Channel Feed: 1K+ active installs, 4.8★ (13 reviews). Plugin Pulse (WP Mayor), as of 2026-11-01. https://plugins.wpmayor.com/plugin/youtube-playlist-player
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