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Replace now Radar no. 02 · Quiet

Search & Replace

By WP Media

What it does: Finds and replaces text in the site database, such as old URLs.

Why it’s listed: This tool rewrites the site database, so it needs active upkeep. It has had no update for over two years. A critical issue was fixed in its last release. Two public advisories are on record, both listed as fixed. A wrong replacement can damage a whole database, so take a backup before any run, whichever tool you use.

View on WordPress.org ↗ Checked Reviewed by Abhishek Deshpande

Active installs
100k+
Last updated
2024-08-26
Tested up to
6.5.14
Rating
4.3 / 5 (283)
Version
3.2.3
Maintainers
6

Is Search & Replace still maintained?

It has gone over two years without an update, and it has a second warning sign: rewrites the database.

Quiet: No update for over a year.

Placements are our opinion, based on public evidence. Risk here means a plugin may not get a fix if a problem appears. It doesn’t mean we found a flaw, unless we show an advisory. Going quiet alone never puts a plugin in Replace now.

Updates No release since 2024-08-26. That was 2 yr 2 mo before our check. WordPress.org plugin directory · checked 2026-10-31
Compatibility Tested up to WordPress 6.5.14. WordPress 7.1.4 was current on 2026-10-31. WordPress.org plugin directory · checked 2026-10-31
Security 2 public advisories on record. Details are below. wpvulnerability.net · checked 2026-10-31
Reviews The latest 10 reviews average 3.9 stars, against 4.3 overall. 2 of them gave 1 or 2 stars. Newest activity: 2026-07-15. We see no negative trend. WordPress.org reviews · checked 2026-10-31
Maintainers 6 listed contributors. 0 of 1 recent support threads are marked resolved. WordPress.org plugin directory · checked 2026-10-31
Usage 7,173 downloads in the last 30 days, including updates. 94.26% of sites run version 3.2. WordPress.org stats · checked 2026-10-31

What to do next

  1. Back up the site, and use a staging copy for any change.
  2. Try one of the alternatives below, and take a backup before every run.

If it works today, no need to panic, but don’t leave this for long.

Recommended alternatives to Search & Replace

Better Search Replace ↗

A direct option for database search and replace.

1M+ installs · 4.3 stars · Updated 2026-08-25 · Tested 7.1.4

Search Regex ↗

Search and replace with regular expressions.

100k+ installs · 4.7 stars · Updated 2026-10-06 · Tested 7.1.4

WP Migrate Lite ↗

Find and replace as part of a database migration.

200k+ installs · 4.2 stars · Updated 2026-10-12 · Tested 7.1.4

Each listed plugin was updated in the last six months, is tested with WordPress 7.0 or newer, and had no open advisory in WPVulnerability when we checked. We have not tried them ourselves. No one pays to appear here.

Security record

AdvisorySeverityFixed in
CVE-2024-38759 ↗
Unsafe data handling
Critical (9.8) 3.2.3
CVE-2024-4145 ↗
SQL injection
High (7.2) 3.2.2

wpvulnerability.net · checked 2026-10-31

A listed advisory does not mean the current version is exploitable.

Latest reviews

Dates show last activity. Titles are written by WordPress.org users.

Also on this radar: Database and backups

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