wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “admin post”
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 post”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 6 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
Colored Admin Post List shows at wp.org #11 but places #24 on merit, a gap of 13 places. Its 400+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 3 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
Admin and Site Enhancements (ASE) 200K+ · 5.0★ (423)
wp.org #1 2 
Post Types Order 600K+ · 4.5★ (296)
wp.org #2 3 
Admin Columns 100K+ · 4.9★ (1652)
wp.org #5 ↓1 2 too low 4 
Simple Custom Post Order 300K+ · 4.8★ (587)
wp.org #6 ↓1 2 too low 5 
Custom Post Type UI 1M+ · 4.6★ (276)
wp.org #4 ↑4 1 too high 6 
Yoast Duplicate Post 3M+ · 4.7★ (538) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #3 3 too high 7 
Post Views Counter 100K+ · 4.9★ (1236)
wp.org #9 ↑4 2 too low 8 
Post SMTP – Complete Email Delivery and SMTP Solution with Email Logs, Alerts, Backup SMTP & Mobile App 300K+ · 4.7★ (528)
wp.org #7 ↓1 1 too high 9 
Admin Menu Editor 300K+ · 4.6★ (312)
wp.org #8 ↓1 1 too high 10 
Schedule Post Changes With PublishPress Future: Unpublish, Delete, Change Status, Trash, Change Categories 100K+ · 4.5★ (172)
wp.org #10 ↓1 11 
The Post Grid – Shortcode, Gutenberg Blocks and Elementor Addon for Post Grid 100K+ · 4.8★ (265)
wp.org #14 3 too low 12 
Post Type Switcher 200K+ · 4.8★ (255)
wp.org #15 3 too low 13 
Post Duplicator 200K+ · 4.8★ (80)
wp.org #12 ↓1 1 too high 14 
Ultimate Post Kit – Elementor Post Grid, Post Carousel, Post Slider & Blog Layout Widgets 30K+ · 4.8★ (58)
wp.org #13 ↓1 1 too high 15 
Smart Post – Post Grid, Post Carousel, Post Slider Gutenberg Blocks for Blog & News 20K+ · 4.7★ (210) heavy footprint
wp.org #20 ↓2 5 too low 16 
Public Post Preview 100K+ · 4.6★ (79)
wp.org #18 ↓2 2 too low 17 
Rate My Post – Star Rating Plugin by FeedbackWP 20K+ · 4.7★ (159) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #16 1 too high 18 
Custom Post Type Permalinks 200K+ · 4.8★ (71)
wp.org #22 4 too low 19 
Admin Slug Column 5K+ · 4.9★ (31)
wp.org #21 2 too low 20 
BrikPanel: WooCommerce Dashboard & Analytics, Abandoned Cart Recovery, Order Export, Inventory Management & Bulk Editor 1K+ · 5.0★ (55) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #19 ↑1 1 too high 21 
Peter's Post Notes – Admin Notes for Posts and Pages 3K+ · 4.9★ (26)
wp.org #23 2 too low 22 
Admin Bar Editor – Toolbar Customization with User Role based access & Custom menus 3K+ · 4.4★ (24) thin reviews
wp.org #24 ↓4 2 too low 23 
Duplicate Post – duplicate pages, copy content, clone posts 5K+ · 4.7★ (7) thin reviews
wp.org #17 6 too high 24 Colored Admin Post List 400+ · 5.0★ (3) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews
wp.org #11 ↓1 13 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.