wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “accessible”
wp.org orders by popularity, so a plugin a host bundled onto millions of sites, or a big-brand one that's slow and mediocre, can sit at the top. Our ranking is built to answer a different question: which of these is actually worth installing. How this works →
For “accessible”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 14 of the top 20.
wp.org search ranks on
Install count (uncapped), the raw star average, freshness, and support. Popularity dominates, so the biggest install base usually wins regardless of how it got there.
We add
A cap on the install boost, volume-weighted ratings, and signals wp.org can't see: whether it throws errors on current PHP, whether the install base is organic or host-pushed, and its risk of being pulled.
Ranked above its merit
Simple Accessible Spoilers shows at wp.org #6 but places #22 on merit, a gap of 16 places. Its 100+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 1 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
Buried gem
Max Mega Menu places #9 on merit, 4.8★ from 882 reviews, but shows at wp.org #18. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.
My Calendar – Accessible Event Manager 20K+ · 4.7★ (159)
wp.org #1 2 
TablePress – Tables in WordPress made easy 600K+ · 5.0★ (4625)
wp.org #2 3 
Yoast SEO – Advanced SEO with real-time guidance and built-in AI 10M+ · 4.8★ (27821)
wp.org #4 1 too low 4 
Slider, Gallery, and Carousel by MetaSlider – Image Slider, Video Slider 500K+ · 4.6★ (743)
wp.org #7 ↓1 3 too low 5 
Polylang 900K+ · 4.7★ (3004)
wp.org #11 6 too low 6 
Advanced Custom Fields (ACF®) 2M+ · 4.5★ (1440) heavy footprint
wp.org #9 ↑3 3 too low 7 C Contact Form 7: Accessible Defaults 5K+ · 5.0★ (6) thin reviews
wp.org #3 ↑7 4 too high 8 
MC4WP: Mailchimp for WordPress 1M+ · 4.8★ (1497)
wp.org #15 ↑2 7 too low 9 Max Mega Menu 300K+ · 4.8★ (882)
wp.org #18 ↓3 9 too low 10 
Spotlight Social Photo Feed 50K+ · 4.7★ (171)
wp.org #14 ↓1 4 too low 11 
Scriptless Social Sharing 10K+ · 5.0★ (70)
wp.org #13 ↑5 2 too low 12 
The SEO Framework – Fast, Automated, Effortless. 200K+ · 4.9★ (380) not PHP-current
wp.org #16 4 too low 13 
WS Form LITE – Drag & Drop Contact Form Builder 10K+ · 5.0★ (322)
wp.org #23 10 too low 14 
My Tickets – Accessible Event Ticketing 600+ · 4.9★ (27)
wp.org #10 ↓2 4 too high 15 
User Switching 200K+ · 4.9★ (238)
wp.org #22 7 too low 16 
Kadence Blocks — Page Builder Toolkit for Gutenberg Editor 600K+ · 4.8★ (333) heavy footprint
wp.org #21 5 too low 17 
Secure Custom Fields 100K+ · 4.8★ (69) heavy footprint
wp.org #17 ↓3 18 
Accessible Carousel & Slider – WCAG AA Compliant Slideshow 500+ · 5.0★ (3) thin reviews
wp.org #5 ↓2 13 too high 19 
SlickNav Mobile Menu 3K+ · 4.8★ (24) thin reviews
wp.org #20 ↑1 1 too low 20 
Web Accessibility (formally known as Ally) – WCAG Scanning, Guided Fixes, Usability Widget 500K+ · 2.9★ (162)
wp.org #24 4 too low 21 
Able Player, accessible HTML5 media player 300+ · 4.7★ (3) thin reviews
wp.org #12 ↓3 9 too high 22 Simple Accessible Spoilers 100+ · 5.0★ (1) thin reviews
wp.org #6 ↓1 16 too high 23 
Slider and Carousel Block – Responsive, Accessible 900+ · 5.0★ (1) thin reviews
wp.org #8 ↓1 15 too high 24 
BoardScribe – Accessible Board Meeting Agendas and Minutes 30+ · 5.0★ (1) thin reviews
wp.org #19 5 too high Merit ranking caps the install boost at 1M (wp.org leaves it uncapped), replaces the raw star average with a volume-weighted Bayesian score and a Wilson lower bound, and keeps wp.org's own freshness and compatibility decays. Method from the plugin-directory source; see Meta Trac #8298. Positions are tracked daily from the first visit to a keyword, so the small arrows show movement since tracking began.