wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “admin js”
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 “admin js”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 10 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 the install base is organic or host-pushed, and its risk of being pulled.
Ranked above its merit
Disable CSS JS Cache shows at wp.org #15 but places #23 on merit, a gap of 8 places. Its 400+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 2 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
Buried gem
Super Page Cache – Cloudflare Cache, Page Speed & Core Web Vitals places #12 on merit, 4.8★ from 517 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.
Simple Custom CSS and JS 600K+ · 4.4★ (104)
wp.org #1 ↑1 2 
Admin and Site Enhancements (ASE) 200K+ · 5.0★ (423)
wp.org #2 ↓1 3 
LiteSpeed Cache 7M+ · 4.8★ (2778)
wp.org #3 ↑1 4 
Admin Menu Editor 300K+ · 4.6★ (312)
wp.org #4 ↓1 5 
Admin Custom Login 10K+ · 4.6★ (388)
wp.org #8 ↑2 3 too low 6 
View Admin As 9K+ · 4.9★ (49)
wp.org #5 ↑1 1 too high 7 
WP Fastest Cache – WordPress Cache Plugin 1M+ · 4.9★ (4229)
wp.org #11 ↑5 4 too low 8 
Controlled Admin Access 10K+ · 4.8★ (45)
wp.org #7 ↑1 1 too high 9 
JS Help Desk – AI-Powered Support & Ticketing System 7K+ · 3.7★ (74)
wp.org #6 ↑1 3 too high 10 
CSS JS Manager, Async JavaScript, Defer Render Blocking CSS 1K+ · 4.8★ (90)
wp.org #10 ↑1 11 D Debloat – Remove Unused CSS, Optimize JS 30K+ · 4.8★ (41)
wp.org #9 2 too high 12 Super Page Cache – Cloudflare Cache, Page Speed & Core Web Vitals 70K+ · 4.8★ (517)
wp.org #18 ↑3 6 too low 13 
Autoptimize 800K+ · 4.7★ (1428)
wp.org #17 ↑1 4 too low 14 F Featured Image Admin Thumb 20K+ · 4.7★ (40)
wp.org #12 2 too high 15 
Admin Menu Tree Page View 10K+ · 4.6★ (48)
wp.org #13 2 too high 16 
Elementor Website Builder – more than just a page builder 10M+ · 4.5★ (7322)
wp.org #24 8 too low 17 
Woody Code Snippets – Insert PHP, CSS, JS, and Header/Footer Scripts 50K+ · 4.5★ (221)
wp.org #20 3 too low 18 
Admin Management Xtended 5K+ · 4.6★ (18) thin reviews
wp.org #14 4 too high 19 
Post Category Filter (WP Admin) 1K+ · 5.0★ (25)
wp.org #21 ↑1 2 too low 20 
JS Categories List Widget 1K+ · 4.8★ (15) thin reviews
wp.org #23 ↑1 3 too low 21 
Admin Help Docs 600+ · 5.0★ (9) thin reviews
wp.org #22 ↑1 1 too low 22 
WPC Admin Columns 1K+ · 5.0★ (4) thin reviews
wp.org #16 ↑1 6 too high 23 Disable CSS JS Cache 400+ · 5.0★ (2) thin reviews
wp.org #15 8 too high 24 C CSS JS Files 100+ · 5.0★ (2) 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.