Search Regex vs SearchWP Live Ajax Search
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
Search Regex leads the WordPress.org popular list today at #290, ahead of SearchWP Live Ajax Search at #793. Over the last 7 days Search Regex slipped 2 places and SearchWP Live Ajax Search slipped 3 places. Search Regex has the largest install base, roughly 2.5× the next: 100K+ active installs against 40K+ for SearchWP Live Ajax Search. Downloads this week: Search Regex 23,195 and SearchWP Live Ajax Search 2,471. Ratings: Search Regex 4.7★ from 101 and SearchWP Live Ajax Search 4.7★ from 36 reviews.
| Metric | Search Regex | SearchWP Live Ajax Search |
|---|---|---|
| Popular rank today | #290 ▼ 2 | #793 ▼ 3 |
| Active installs | 100K+ | 40K+ |
| Downloads, last 7 days | 23,195 | 2,471 |
| Rating | 4.7★ (101) | 4.7★ (36) |
| Last updated | Oct 6, 2026 | Aug 8, 2026 |
| Current version | 3.5.1 | 1.8.8 |
| Best rank on record | #288 | #774 |
| Days in the top 50 | 0 | 0 |
| On WordPress.org since | Sep 2007 | May 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
- Search Regex vs Search & Replace Everything by WPCode – Find and Replace Media, Text, Links, and More
- Search Regex vs Search & Replace
- Search Regex vs Real-Time Find and Replace
- Search Regex vs Customizer Search
- SearchWP Live Ajax Search vs Relevanssi
- SearchWP Live Ajax Search vs Ajax Search Lite
- SearchWP Live Ajax Search vs WP Search with Algolia
- SearchWP Live Ajax Search vs Ivory Search
Frequently asked questions
Which is more popular, Search Regex or SearchWP Live Ajax Search?
By active installs, Search Regex: 100K+ sites run it against 40K+ for SearchWP Live Ajax Search, according to WordPress.org figures captured on October 28, 2026.
Which ranks higher on WordPress.org, Search Regex or SearchWP Live Ajax Search?
Search Regex, at #290 on the WordPress.org popular plugins list today, with SearchWP Live Ajax Search at #793. The ranking reflects recent installs and moves daily, which is why this page shows the history rather than one snapshot.
Are Search Regex or SearchWP Live Ajax Search 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.