Head-to-head · October 2026
Popular Post Widget vs Simple Category Ranking
Popular Post Widget comes out ahead, winning 5 of 7 head-to-head checks against Simple Category Ranking.
Popular Post Widget
This is a simple widget like others to show your most popular posts based on views of your post. Put it in…
Simple Category Ranking
This plugin is easy to set category ranking. If you view the post,Ranking is on the same category.
| Metric | Popular Post Widget | Simple Category Ranking |
|---|---|---|
| Active installs | 200+ | 10+ |
| Downloads (30 days) | 151 | 61 |
| Download trend | +37.3% | +7% |
| Rating | 5/5 | — |
| Reviews | 1 | 0 |
| Health score | 33/100 | 23/100 |
| Last updated | 9 years ago | 8 years ago |
| Tested up to | WP 4.9.34 | WP 5.0.0 |
| Support resolved | — | — |
| Requires PHP | Any | Any |
| First released | May 2016 | Nov 2018 |
Daily downloads, last 90 days
Popular Post WidgetSimple Category Ranking
Choose Popular Post Widget if…
You care most about active installs, downloads (30 days) and download trend.
- Small user base (200+ active installs)
- Very few reviews so far
- No update in 8 years
- Only tested up to WordPress 4.9 (latest is 7.1)
Choose Simple Category Ranking if…
You care most about last updated and tested up to.
- Small user base (10+ active installs)
- Very few reviews so far
- No update in 7 years
- Only tested up to WordPress 5.0 (latest is 7.1)
Both compete in: Popular post
FAQ
Popular Post Widget vs Simple Category Ranking: quick answers
Straight answers, pulled from live WordPress.org data.
Live data from WordPress.org · checked Oct 12, 2026
Which is better, Popular Post Widget or Simple Category Ranking?
Popular Post Widget comes out ahead, winning 5 of 7 head-to-head checks against Simple Category Ranking. Choose Popular Post Widget if you care most about active installs, downloads (30 days) and download trend. Choose Simple Category Ranking if you care most about last updated and tested up to.
Is Popular Post Widget more popular than Simple Category Ranking?
Popular Post Widget is the more popular of the two with 200+ active installs, compared with 10+ for Simple Category Ranking.
Can I use Popular Post Widget and Simple Category Ranking together?
Both plugins cover Popular post, so most sites only need one. Running two plugins that do the same job can cause conflicts and slow your site down — pick the one that fits best and remove the other.
Are Popular Post Widget and Simple Category Ranking free?
Yes. Both are free to download from the official WordPress.org plugin directory. Either may also offer paid upgrades from its developer.
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