Category Posts Widget vs Smart Archives Reloaded
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
Category Posts Widget leads the WordPress.org popular list today at #880, ahead of Smart Archives Reloaded at #7,054. Over the last 7 days Category Posts Widget slipped 1 place and Smart Archives Reloaded slipped 9 places. Category Posts Widget has the largest install base, roughly 44× the next: 40K+ active installs against 900+ for Smart Archives Reloaded. Downloads this week: Category Posts Widget 1,533 and Smart Archives Reloaded 41. Ratings: Category Posts Widget 4.5★ from 79 and Smart Archives Reloaded 4.3★ from 15 reviews.
| Metric | Category Posts Widget | Smart Archives Reloaded |
|---|---|---|
| Popular rank today | #880 ▼ 1 | #7,054 ▼ 9 |
| Active installs | 40K+ | 900+ |
| Downloads, last 7 days | 1,533 | 41 |
| Rating | 4.5★ (79) | 4.3★ (15) |
| Last updated | Oct 19, 2026 | Nov 28, 2017 |
| Current version | 5.1.2 | 2.0.5 |
| Best rank on record | #867 | #6,975 |
| Days in the top 50 | 0 | 0 |
| On WordPress.org since | Oct 2007 | Aug 2008 |
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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- Smart Archives Reloaded vs Disable Author Archives
- Smart Archives Reloaded vs Advanced Post Block – Display Your Posts Exactly How You Want
Frequently asked questions
Which is more popular, Category Posts Widget or Smart Archives Reloaded?
By active installs, Category Posts Widget: 40K+ sites run it against 900+ for Smart Archives Reloaded, according to WordPress.org figures captured on October 20, 2026.
Which ranks higher on WordPress.org, Category Posts Widget or Smart Archives Reloaded?
Category Posts Widget, at #880 on the WordPress.org popular plugins list today, with Smart Archives Reloaded at #7,054. The ranking reflects recent installs and moves daily, which is why this page shows the history rather than one snapshot.
Are Category Posts Widget or Smart Archives Reloaded 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.