Basic User Avatars vs Meks Smart Author Widget
Two WordPress plugins head to head: ranking, active installs, downloads and ratings, from our daily tracking of the WordPress.org directory.
These aren’t all alternatives to each other — they do different jobs — so this page compares popularity only, not features.
At a glance
Basic User Avatars leads the WordPress.org popular list today at #1,170, ahead of Meks Smart Author Widget at #1,666. Over the last 7 days Basic User Avatars climbed 4 places and Meks Smart Author Widget held its place. Basic User Avatars has the largest install base, roughly 2× the next: 20K+ active installs against 10K+ for Meks Smart Author Widget. Ratings: Basic User Avatars 4.7★ from 42 and Meks Smart Author Widget 4.5★ from 8 reviews.
| Metric | Basic User Avatars | Meks Smart Author Widget |
|---|---|---|
| Popular rank today | #1,170 ▲ 4 | #1,666 ▬ |
| Active installs | 20K+ | 10K+ |
| Downloads, last 7 days | — | — |
| Rating | 4.7★ (42) | 4.5★ (8) |
| Last updated | Nov 15, 2024 | Jul 23, 2024 |
| Current version | 1.0.9 | 1.1.5 |
| Best rank on record | #1,170 | #1,659 |
| Days in the top 50 | 0 | 0 |
| On WordPress.org since | Jan 2014 | Jan 2014 |
| Sites detected by our detector | 0 | 1 |
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
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- Basic User Avatars vs Gravatar Enhanced
- Meks Smart Author Widget vs WP User Avatars
- Meks Smart Author Widget vs Gravatar Enhanced
- Meks Smart Author Widget vs One User Avatar
Frequently asked questions
Which is more popular, Basic User Avatars or Meks Smart Author Widget?
By active installs, Basic User Avatars: 20K+ sites run it against 10K+ for Meks Smart Author Widget, according to WordPress.org figures captured on September 12, 2026.
Which ranks higher on WordPress.org, Basic User Avatars or Meks Smart Author Widget?
Basic User Avatars, at #1,170 on the WordPress.org popular plugins list today, with Meks Smart Author Widget at #1,666. The ranking reflects recent installs and moves daily, which is why this page shows the history rather than one snapshot.
Are Basic User Avatars or Meks Smart Author Widget alternatives to each other?
Not all of them. Some of these plugins do different jobs and many sites run more than one. This page compares their popularity, not their features.
Where do these numbers come from?
WordPress.org publishes each plugin’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 plugins have moved over time rather than a single day.