Adam Greenwell

<p>The Hits List keeps post view tracking on your own WordPress site and gives you block, widget, and template-tag tools for displaying popular content.</p>
<p>Key features:</p>
<ul>
<li>Local view tracking stored in WordPress database tables</li>
<li>Overall and daily popular-post counts</li>
<li>Popular Posts block and widget support with public post type selection</li>
<li>WordPress dashboard cards for daily top posts, all-time top posts, and views over time</li>
<li>Top 10 migration compatibility with resumable rerun-safe imports, WP-CLI tools, legacy widget support, native widget conversion, cleanup for old Top 10 leftovers, and optional Top 10 plugin removal</li>
<li>REST-based tracking with AJAX fallback</li>
<li>Privacy-policy integration for site owners</li>
</ul>
<h3>Privacy</h3>
<p>The Hits List stores post view counts locally in the <code>hits_list</code> and <code>hits_list_daily</code> database tables (table prefix may vary).</p>
<p>It does not send tracking data to a third-party analytics service.</p>
<p>Daily tracking buckets are retained for 180 days by default and older rows are removed automatically.</p>
<p>You are responsible for describing your use of visitor analytics on your own site as needed.</p>
<h3>Source Code and Build Tools</h3>
<p>The compiled block assets in <code>blocks/popular-posts/build/</code> are generated from the human-readable source files included in <code>blocks/popular-posts/src/</code>.</p>
<p>To rebuild the block assets:</p>
<ol>
<li>Go to <code>blocks/popular-posts/</code>.</li>
<li>Run <code>npm install</code>.</li>
<li>Run <code>npm run build</code>.</li>
</ol>
<p>The block build uses <code>@wordpress/scripts</code>. Runtime PHP, vanilla JavaScript, and CSS assets outside the block build are maintained directly in the plugin source.</p>


The Hits List

Track post views locally, display popular posts, and migrate Top 10 data into a completely free, drop-in replacement.

Lise Rasmussen

<p><strong>Video stats</strong></p>
<p>NEW: VidLog now tracks how long visitors watch your videos, giving you deeper insight beyond simple play counts.</p>
<p><strong>VidLog</strong> gives you immediate insight into how your self-hosted videos are being watched, directly inside your WordPress dashboard.</p>
<p>The moment a visitor presses PLAY, VidLog records the view and stores key details such as:</p>
<ul>
<li>Date and time</li>
<li>IP address</li>
<li>Country/City</li>
<li>Page slug</li>
<li>Video file</li>
<li>Referrer source</li>
<li>Pages viewed</li>
<li>Watched time (minutes viewed per session)</li>
</ul>
<p>If you use self-hosted video files like <code>.mp4</code>, <code>.webm</code>, <code>.mov</code>, <code>.m4v</code>, <code>.avi</code>, or <code>.m3u8</code>, VidLog helps you understand what people are watching, where they are coming from, and which videos perform best. The plugin also logs instant visits on your site pages, logging the same metadata.</p>
<p><strong>Page stats</strong></p>
<p><strong>VidLog</strong> also instantly logs what pages visitors view on your site. The log contains the same metadata as video views. It counts all page visits, not only unique visits.</p>
<p><strong>Why site owners use VidLog</strong></p>
<ul>
<li>Instant logging the moment a visitor presses PLAY</li>
<li>Instant logging the moment a page is visited</li>
<li>Watched time tracking for self-hosted videos</li>
<li>Clean monthly video and page logs inside WordPress</li>
<li>CSV exports for reporting and backup</li>
<li>Referrer tracking to see where visitors came from</li>
<li>Lightweight setup with no external analytics dashboard required</li>
<li>Simple dashboard for reviewing logs directly in WordPress</li>
</ul>
<p><strong>Perfect for</strong></p>
<ul>
<li>Filmmakers and video creators</li>
<li>Membership sites</li>
<li>Online courses and educators</li>
<li>Video tutorials</li>
<li>Agencies managing client video content</li>
<li>Any WordPress site using self-hosted videos</li>
</ul>
<blockquote>
<p><strong>Important:</strong> VidLog tracks self-hosted video files. It does not track YouTube or Vimeo embeds.</p>
</blockquote>
<h3>External services</h3>
<p>The link to upgrade to pro opens a new tab with a link to the plugin’s website.</p>
<h3>Video Tutorial</h3>
<p>Need help getting started? Watch the full VidLog setup tutorial here:</p>
<p><span class="embed-youtube" style="text-align:center; display: block;"><iframe loading="lazy" class="youtube-player" width="750" height="422" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/6O_DzQ3838I?version=3&rel=1&showsearch=0&showinfo=1&iv_load_policy=1&fs=1&hl=en-US&autohide=2&wmode=transparent" allowfullscreen="true" style="border:0;" sandbox="allow-scripts allow-same-origin allow-popups allow-presentation allow-popups-to-escape-sandbox"></iframe></span></p>
<p>Watch on YouTube:</p>
<p><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6O_DzQ3838I" rel="nofollow ugc">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6O_DzQ3838I</a></p>
<h3>Features</h3>
<p>VidLog includes instant video play logging, page view logging, watched time tracking, CSV exports, monthly log storage, and clean logs directly inside WordPress.</p>
<p>For a full feature list and more details about <strong>VidLog PRO</strong>, visit:</p>
<p><a href="https://theappmill.com/vidlog/index.html" rel="nofollow ugc">https://theappmill.com/vidlog/index.html</a></p>
<h3>VidLog PRO</h3>
<p>Want deeper insights? <strong>VidLog PRO</strong> adds an <strong>Advanced Stats</strong> area for both Video plays and Page views, right inside WordPress with:</p>
<ul>
<li>Top 10 videos chart</li>
<li>Top 10 countries chart</li>
<li>Top 10 referrers chart</li>
<li>Complete analytics lists below each chart</li>
<li>Faster insight into which content performs best</li>
<li>A clearer overview of viewer behavior across your video library</li>
</ul>
<p>If you want more than raw logs and CSV exports, VidLog PRO gives you a more visual analytics experience directly in your WordPress dashboard.</p>
<h3>Included Analytics</h3>
<p>VidLog helps you answer questions like:</p>
<ul>
<li>Which videos are being watched the most?</li>
<li>Which countries send the most viewers?</li>
<li>Which referrers drive the most plays?</li>
<li>Which pages are being visited the most?</li>
<li>Which month had the most activity?</li>
<li>Which exact files and slugs were viewed?</li>
<li>How long are visitors watching videos?</li>
</ul>
<h3>External Services</h3>
<p>This plugin uses the following external service to enrich log data with geolocation information:</p>
<ul>
<li><strong>ip-api.com</strong> – <code>http://ip-api.com/json/</code></li>
<li>Purpose: resolves IP addresses into country data for analytics logs</li>
<li>Data sent: the visitor IP address</li>
<li>Service privacy policy: <a href="https://ip-api.com/docs/legal" rel="nofollow ugc">https://ip-api.com/docs/legal</a></li>
</ul>
<p>This plugin also displays country flag images using:</p>
<ul>
<li><strong>flagcdn.com</strong> – <code>https://flagcdn.com/</code></li>
<li>Purpose: displays a small country flag icon next to log entries in the dashboard</li>
<li>Data sent: no personal data is sent by the plugin; the browser loads the flag image file directly</li>
<li>Service privacy policy: <a href="https://flagcdn.com/privacy/" rel="nofollow ugc">https://flagcdn.com/privacy/</a></li>
</ul>
<p>This plugin also includes a link in the plugin UI to:</p>
<ul>
<li><strong>The AppMill</strong> – <a href="https://theappmill.com/vidlog/index.html" rel="nofollow ugc">https://theappmill.com/vidlog/index.html</a></li>
<li>Purpose: product and plugin information only</li>
<li>No visitor log data is sent to this site by the plugin</li>
</ul>
<h3>Credits</h3>
<p>Developed by The AppMill.</p>


VidLog

Track self-hosted video plays and page views inside WordPress with instant logging, watched time tracking, CSV exports, and clean monthly logs.

The Hits List vs VidLog