Popular Widget
v1.7.0by Hax · updated 9 years ago
Display the most commented or most viewed posts in a tabbed widget, filter the post by date range or by category. It also includes a tags tab.
- Rank
- #8,140
- Up1 vs yesterday
- Active installs (est.)
- ≈ 659
- 600+ reported · High
- Total downloads
- 129.4K
- 129,436 all-time
- Rating
- 4.5/5
- 14 reviews
- Support resolved
- –
- 0 of 0 threads, last 2 months
Popular Widget at a glance
Popular Widget is a WordPress plugin by Hax with 600+ active installs, the #8,140 most popular plugin on WordPress.org. On a typical day it’s downloaded about 8 times, 50% more than the month before. It’s rated 4.5 out of 5 from 14 reviews. Version 1.7.0 came out on Nov 28, 2017, more than 8 years ago. It is tested up to WordPress 4.6.0. It leads the 2 plugins tagged “most-commented”. It was first released in 2011.
Chart time range
Applies to every chart below. History from Oct 9, 2026, 31 days.
Downloads over time
Download stats132 downloads · the last 30 days
View as table
| Date | Popular Widget |
|---|---|
| Oct 29, 2026 | 4 |
| Oct 28, 2026 | 8 |
| Oct 27, 2026 | 9 |
| Oct 26, 2026 | 8 |
| Oct 25, 2026 | 5 |
| Oct 24, 2026 | 11 |
| Oct 23, 2026 | 9 |
| Oct 22, 2026 | 7 |
| Oct 21, 2026 | 8 |
| Oct 20, 2026 | 2 |
| Oct 19, 2026 | 9 |
| Oct 18, 2026 | 4 |
| Oct 17, 2026 | 6 |
| Oct 16, 2026 | 5 |
| Oct 15, 2026 | 5 |
| Oct 14, 2026 | 5 |
| Oct 13, 2026 | 6 |
| Oct 12, 2026 | 3 |
| Oct 11, 2026 | 3 |
| Oct 10, 2026 | 9 |
| Oct 9, 2026 | 6 |
Unusual spikes are usually updates, not new installs.
Estimated installs
≈ 659 · -3.1% in the last 30 days
View as table
| Date | Estimated installs |
|---|---|
| Nov 8, 2026 | 659 |
| Nov 7, 2026 | 659 |
| Nov 5, 2026 | 661 |
| Nov 4, 2026 | 659 |
| Nov 3, 2026 | 658 |
| Nov 2, 2026 | 660 |
| Nov 1, 2026 | 661 |
| Oct 31, 2026 | 660 |
| Oct 30, 2026 | 663 |
| Oct 29, 2026 | 664 |
| Oct 28, 2026 | 664 |
| Oct 27, 2026 | 680 |
Rank over time
#8,140 · down 25 in the last 30 days
View as table
| Date | Daily snapshot |
|---|---|
| Nov 8, 2026 | #8,140 |
| Nov 7, 2026 | #8,141 |
| Nov 6, 2026 | #8,136 |
| Nov 5, 2026 | #8,118 |
| Nov 4, 2026 | #8,129 |
| Nov 3, 2026 | #8,137 |
| Nov 2, 2026 | #8,121 |
| Nov 1, 2026 | #8,112 |
| Oct 31, 2026 | #8,123 |
| Oct 30, 2026 | #8,097 |
| Oct 29, 2026 | #8,103 |
| Oct 28, 2026 | #8,121 |
| Oct 27, 2026 | #8,115 |
Growth %
Average -0.26% a day in the last 30 days
View as table
| Date | Growth |
|---|---|
| Nov 8, 2026 | 0.00% |
| Nov 7, 2026 | -0.15% |
| Nov 5, 2026 | +0.30% |
| Nov 4, 2026 | +0.15% |
| Nov 3, 2026 | -0.30% |
| Nov 2, 2026 | -0.15% |
| Nov 1, 2026 | +0.15% |
| Oct 31, 2026 | -0.45% |
| Oct 30, 2026 | -0.15% |
| Oct 29, 2026 | 0.00% |
| Oct 28, 2026 | -2.35% |
Active installs band
600+ on WordPress.org
View as table
| Date | Daily snapshot |
|---|---|
| Nov 8, 2026 | 600+ |
| Nov 7, 2026 | 600+ |
| Nov 6, 2026 | 600+ |
| Nov 5, 2026 | 600+ |
| Nov 4, 2026 | 600+ |
| Nov 3, 2026 | 600+ |
| Nov 2, 2026 | 600+ |
| Nov 1, 2026 | 600+ |
| Oct 31, 2026 | 600+ |
| Oct 30, 2026 | 600+ |
| Oct 29, 2026 | 600+ |
| Oct 28, 2026 | 600+ |
| Oct 27, 2026 | 600+ |
Search rankings
Where it appears in WordPress.org search for the searches you track, checked every day.
See where Popular Widget ranks in search
Track this plugin to check its position for the searches you choose, daily, with an alert when it moves.
Change log
From our daily snapshot of WordPress.orgNo changes yet. When this plugin's name, short description, tags, “Tested up to” or version change, they show here with what happened to its rank next.
Versions in use
Share of active installs on each published version, from WordPress.org.
- v1.796%
- v1.63.8%
Rating trend
4.5★★★★★14 reviews · steady in the last 30 days
Requirements & info
Version history- Version
- 1.7.0
- Requires WordPress
- 3.0.0
- Tested up to
- 4.6.0
- Requires PHP
- –
- First released
- Feb 27, 2011
- Last updated
- Nov 28, 2017
- Releases, last 12 months
- …
Questions about Popular Widget
How many websites use Popular Widget?
Popular Widget is active on 600+ WordPress sites, as WordPress.org reports it. WordPress.org rounds the number down, so the real count is somewhat higher. That makes it the #8,140 most popular plugin on WordPress.org.
How many times has Popular Widget been downloaded?
129,436 times in total since 2011. On a typical day it’s downloaded about 8 times. See download stats
When was Popular Widget last updated?
Version 1.7.0 came out on Nov 28, 2017 (8 years ago).
Is Popular Widget compatible with the latest WordPress?
Popular Widget’s readme says it’s tested up to WordPress 4.6.0, while the current version is 7.1. That doesn’t mean it breaks, but its author hasn’t confirmed it works with the latest releases.
Is Popular Widget still maintained?
Its last release was 8 years ago, so it may no longer be actively maintained. No support threads were opened in the last two months.
What rating does Popular Widget have?
4.5 out of 5 from 14 reviews on WordPress.org. 64% of them give 5 stars.
What are the best alternatives to Popular Widget?
The plugins most like Popular Widget, by the tags they share, are Black Studio TinyMCE Widget (200K+), Custom Sidebars (100K+) and Image Widget (100K+). Compare all alternatives
Latest reviews
Analyze reviewsReview stats
4.5
★★★★★
14 reviews
- 5 stars: 9 reviews, 64%
- 4 stars: 3 reviews, 21%
- 3 stars: 2 reviews, 14%
- 2 stars: 0 reviews, 0%
- 1 stars: 0 reviews, 0%
- Positive
- 86%4–5★
- Mixed
- 14%3★
- Critical
- 0%1–2★
- About 2 more 5★ reviews would lift it to 4.6.
- Each new 1★ review takes 7 five-star reviews to balance out.
Compare with competitors
Add up to 1 competitor. No account needed.
| Metric | |
|---|---|
| Estimated installs | ≈ 659 |
| Reported installs | 600+ |
| Rating | 4.5 |
| Reviews | 14 |
| Total downloads | 129.4K |
| Author | Hax |
| First released | Feb 27, 2011 |
| Version | 1.7.0 |
| Requires WP | 3.0.0 |
| Requires PHP | – |
| Last updated | Nov 28, 2017 |
Alternatives to Popular Widget
Compare all alternativesPopular plugins with the same tags, the most in common first.
Black Studio TinyMCE Widget
by Black Studio
The visual editor widget for WordPress.
- Rank
- #235
- Installs
- 200K+
- 4.8
Custom Sidebars
by WebFactory
Flexible sidebars for custom classic widget configurations on any page or post. Create custom sidebars with ease!
- Rank
- #448
- Installs
- 100K+
- 4.7
Image Widget
by Nexcess
A simple image widget that uses the native WordPress media manager to add image widgets to your site.
- Rank
- #399
- Installs
- 100K+
- 4.9
Recent Posts Widget With Thumbnails
by Kybernetik Services
List the most recent posts with post titles, thumbnails, excerpts, authors, categories, dates and more!
- Rank
- #353
- Installs
- 100K+
- 4.8
WP Popular Posts
by Hector Cabrera
A highly customizable, easy-to-use popular posts plugin!
- Rank
- #334
- Installs
- 100K+
- 4.5
PHP Code Widget
by Samuel Wood (Otto)
Like the Text widget, but also allows working PHP code to be inserted.
- Rank
- #576
- Installs
- 70K+
- 4.7
Side by side:Popular Widget vs Black Studio TinyMCE WidgetPopular Widget vs Custom SidebarsPopular Widget vs Image Widget
More by Hax
See everything by HaxOther plugins from this author in our catalog.
