Chicago vs MW Small
Two WordPress themes head to head: ranking, active installs, downloads and ratings, from our daily tracking of the WordPress.org directory.
At a glance
Chicago leads the WordPress.org popular list today at #1,916, ahead of MW Small at #8,446. Over the last 7 days Chicago climbed 17 places and MW Small held its place. Chicago has the largest install base, roughly 33× the next: 1K+ active installs against 30+ for MW Small. Downloads this week: Chicago 10 and MW Small 7. Ratings: Chicago 5★ from 2 and MW Small 5★ from 1 reviews.
| Metric | Chicago | MW Small |
|---|---|---|
| Popular rank today | #1,916 ▲ 17 | #8,446 ▬ |
| Active installs | 1K+ | 30+ |
| Downloads, last 7 days | 10 | 7 |
| Rating | 5★ (2) | 5★ (1) |
| Type | Classic theme | Classic theme |
| Last updated | May 27, 2026 | Jul 22, 2025 |
| Current version | 2.2 | 1.4.0 |
| Best rank on record | #1,916 | #8,113 |
| Days in the top 50 | 0 | 0 |
| On WordPress.org since | May 2015 | Jan 2015 |
Highlighted cells mark the strongest figure in each row. Rank and installs are from the latest WordPress.org capture; downloads are the last seven captured days.
Ranking history Lower is better
Active installs
Downloads per day
More comparisons
Frequently asked questions
Which is more popular, Chicago or MW Small?
By active installs, Chicago: 1K+ sites run it against 30+ for MW Small, according to WordPress.org figures captured on October 22, 2026.
Which ranks higher on WordPress.org, Chicago or MW Small?
Chicago, at #1,916 on the WordPress.org popular themes list today, with MW Small at #8,446. The ranking reflects recent installs and moves daily, which is why this page shows the history rather than one snapshot.
Is Chicago a block theme or a classic theme? And MW Small?
Chicago is a classic theme, MW Small is a classic theme. Block themes are built for the Site Editor; classic themes use the Customizer and widget areas.
Where do these numbers come from?
WordPress.org publishes each theme’s active install count and its position on the popular list. This site records both every day, along with per-day downloads and ratings, so the charts above show how the themes have moved over time rather than a single day.