Online Status — Help
Show which members are online right now with a fully customizable badge — colors, fonts, position, animation.
What it does
Online Status shows a small colored badge on member photos indicating that the member is currently active on your site. Visitors get an at-a-glance signal of who's available right now — useful for marketplace, networking, dating, coaching, and community directories.
The badge appears in two places: on member photos in search result cards and on member profile pages.
Every aspect is configurable: how recent counts as "online," what the badge says, where it sits on the photo, what colors and fonts it uses, whether it pulses, and whether members can hide their own badge.
How "online" is determined
A member counts as online if they've been active on your site within the Online Minutes threshold you set. The widget tracks last-active timestamps via a lightweight heartbeat table (osb_heartbeat) that's created automatically the first time the widget runs.
Tune the threshold to match your community's pace:
- Short window (5–10 minutes) — strict; only currently-on-page members show as online
- Default (15 minutes) — balanced; covers brief tab-switches and reading time
- Longer window (30–60 minutes) — generous; counts members who've been around recently as still active
Settings tab
Configure via Plugins → DirectoryCustomize → My Widgets → Online Status Badge → Configure → Settings.
| Setting | Default | What it controls |
|---|---|---|
| Enable Badge | On | Master toggle — turn off to disable the entire widget without deleting it |
| Online Minutes | 15 | Minutes of inactivity before a member's badge stops appearing |
| Badge Text | Online Now | Text inside the badge — localize ("En ligne", "Activo") or rebrand ("Live", "Available", "Here", "Active") |
| Badge Position | bottom-center | Where the badge sits on the member photo. Options include: top-left, top-right, top-center, bottom-left, bottom-right, bottom-center |
| Show Pulse | On | Subtle pulsing animation around the badge dot — draws the eye to "live" status. Turn off for a static look |
Design tab
Configure via Plugins → DirectoryCustomize → My Widgets → Online Status Badge → Configure → Design.
| Option | Default | What it controls |
|---|---|---|
| Badge Background Color |
#23a300 (green) |
Fill color of the badge — pick from color picker |
| Badge Text Color |
#ffffff (white) |
Color of the "Online Now" text inside the badge |
| Badge Dot Color |
#ffffff (white) |
Color of the indicator dot inside the badge |
| Badge Shadow Color | rgba(0,0,0,0.25) |
Drop-shadow color behind the badge — softens the edge against varying photo backgrounds |
| Font Family | (inherit site font) | Override the badge's font family. Leave empty to inherit your site's default font |
| Font Size | 11px | Badge text size. Options: 10px / 11px / 12px / 13px |
| Font Weight | 600 (Semi-bold) | Badge text weight. Options: 400 / 500 / 600 / 700 |
| Badge Corner Radius | 20px (full pill) | Roundness of the badge's corners. Options: 0 (sharp) / 4px / 8px / 20px (full pill) |
Color picking tips:
-
Bright green
#23a300(default) — universal "active/available" signal; most familiar to users - Brand color — match your directory's primary palette for cohesive look
- High-contrast — picks the eye out of photo backgrounds; avoid dark colors that get lost in dark photos
Position tips:
- bottom-center (default) — balanced, centered placement that doesn't obscure the face
- top-right — natural reading position; good when photos have important content at the bottom
- bottom-right — classic chat-app convention; instantly understood as "online indicator"
Member privacy controls
Each member can hide their own badge from their profile settings. The widget uses an opt-out heartbeat row (the opt_out column on the osb_heartbeat table) — when a member toggles their badge off:
- The badge stops appearing for all visitors
- Their actual last-active data is unaffected — only the visible badge is hidden
- They can re-enable any time from the same setting
This is recommended for communities that take privacy seriously — health, coaching, dating, networking — where a member might not want to advertise when they're online.
Common questions
- Has the member been active within your Online Minutes threshold? Try lowering the threshold to confirm.
- Has the member opted out of badge display via their profile settings?
- Is the member an active full-status member? Pending or suspended accounts don't display the badge.
Where it lives
In your DirectoryCustomize plugin admin: Plugins → DirectoryCustomize → My Widgets → Online Status Badge.
Two configuration tabs: Settings (5 options) and Design (8 visual options). Save changes apply immediately — no rebuild or republish needed.
Need more help?
If you've checked the questions above and the badge still isn't behaving as expected, contact support with:
- Your directory URL
- The member username you're testing with
- A screenshot of your Settings + Design tab values
We'll help you sort it out.