wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “added”
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 “added”, we and wp.org disagree on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 7 of the top 20. 4 plugins are pushed down for signals wp.org ignores: errors, a host-installed base, or removal risk.
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
Two Factor (2FA) Authentication via Email shows at wp.org #18 but places #24 on merit, a gap of 6 places. Its 9K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 4 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
UpdraftPlus: WP Backup & Migration Plugin 4M+ · 4.8★ (8706)
wp.org #2 1 too low 2 
W3 Total Cache 900K+ · 4.4★ (5420)
wp.org #4 2 too low 3 
WPCode – Insert Headers and Footers + Custom Code Snippets – WordPress Code Manager 3M+ · 4.9★ (1916)
wp.org #5 2 too low 4 
WPC Added To Cart Notification for WooCommerce 3K+ · 4.9★ (9) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews
wp.org #1 3 too high 5 
Extended Coupon Features for WooCommerce FREE 10K+ · 5.0★ (69)
wp.org #6 1 too low 6 
Cart Popup for WooCommerce 9K+ · 4.4★ (70) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #3 3 too high 7 
Security Plugin, Firewall & Malware Scanner with Auto Removal 40K+ · 4.8★ (397)
wp.org #9 2 too low 8 
Advanced Custom Fields (ACF®) 2M+ · 4.5★ (1440) heavy footprint
wp.org #7 ↑12 1 too high 9 
Post SMTP – Complete Email Delivery and SMTP Solution with Email Logs, Alerts, Backup SMTP & Mobile App 300K+ · 4.7★ (528)
wp.org #10 1 too low 10 
Polylang 900K+ · 4.7★ (3004)
wp.org #11 ↓3 1 too low 11 
TranslatePress – Translate Multilingual sites with AI Translation 400K+ · 4.7★ (1667)
wp.org #12 ↓1 1 too low 12 
Forminator Forms – Contact Form, Payment Form & Custom Form Builder 600K+ · 4.8★ (2143)
wp.org #14 2 too low 13 
Simple CAPTCHA with Cloudflare Turnstile 200K+ · 4.7★ (262) not PHP-current
wp.org #8 ↓1 5 too high 14 
PrettyLinks – Affiliate Link Management, URL Shortener, Link Cloaking, Tracking & Branded Short Links 200K+ · 4.8★ (1322)
wp.org #15 ↓2 1 too low 15 
WPForms – AI Form Builder for WordPress – Contact Forms, Payment Forms, Survey Form, Quiz & More 5M+ · 4.8★ (14387)
wp.org #16 ↑2 1 too low 16 
Germanized for WooCommerce 70K+ · 4.8★ (496)
wp.org #19 ↓2 3 too low 17 
Export All URLs 50K+ · 4.6★ (94)
wp.org #13 ↓1 4 too high 18 
Rank Math SEO – AI SEO Tools to Dominate SEO Rankings 4M+ · 4.8★ (7519)
wp.org #23 ↑1 5 too low 19 
Post Types Order 600K+ · 4.5★ (296)
wp.org #17 ↓2 2 too high 20 
Relevanssi – A Better Search 100K+ · 4.8★ (406)
wp.org #24 ↓1 4 too low 21 
Duplicator – Backups & Migration Plugin – Cloud Backups, Scheduled Backups, & More 1M+ · 4.9★ (4940) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #21 ↑1 22 
Search Regex 100K+ · 4.7★ (101)
wp.org #22 ↓1 23 
Disable Lazy Load 9K+ · 4.5★ (23) thin reviews
wp.org #20 3 too high 24 Two Factor (2FA) Authentication via Email 9K+ · 5.0★ (4) thin reviews
wp.org #18 ↓2 6 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.