wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “advanced plugin view”
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 “advanced plugin view”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 9 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
Advanced Import shows at wp.org #15 but places #24 on merit, a gap of 9 places. Its 80K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 4.4★ average from 7 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
Buried gem
Advanced Database Cleaner – Optimize & Clean Database to Speed Up Site Performance places #10 on merit, 4.9★ from 1962 reviews, but shows at wp.org #20. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.
Advanced Custom Fields (ACF®) 2M+ · 4.5★ (1440)
wp.org #1 ↑1 2 
Yoast SEO – Advanced SEO with real-time guidance and built-in AI 10M+ · 4.8★ (27820)
wp.org #2 ↓1 3 
Advanced Ads – Ad Manager & AdSense 90K+ · 4.9★ (1463)
wp.org #3 4 
Advanced Shipment Tracking for WooCommerce 70K+ · 4.5★ (355)
wp.org #4 5 
UpdraftPlus: WP Backup & Migration Plugin 4M+ · 4.8★ (8708)
wp.org #6 ↓1 1 too low 6 
Advanced File Manager – Ultimate File Manager for WordPress And Document Library Solution 100K+ · 4.8★ (441)
wp.org #7 ↓1 1 too low 7 
Wordfence Security – Firewall, Malware Scan, and Login Security 5M+ · 4.7★ (5040)
wp.org #8 ↓1 1 too low 8 
Advanced IP Blocker 3K+ · 4.9★ (27)
wp.org #5 ↑4 3 too high 9 
Advanced Product Fields (Product Addons) for WooCommerce 50K+ · 4.8★ (284)
wp.org #12 3 too low 10 Advanced Database Cleaner – Optimize & Clean Database to Speed Up Site Performance 100K+ · 4.9★ (1962)
wp.org #20 ↓10 10 too low 11 
BackWPup – WordPress Backup & Restore Plugin 400K+ · 4.0★ (1323)
wp.org #13 ↑2 2 too low 12 
GTM4WP – A Google Tag Manager (GTM) plugin for WordPress 700K+ · 4.5★ (155)
wp.org #10 ↑1 2 too high 13 
Business Directory Plugin – Easy Listing & Member Directories for WordPress 10K+ · 4.6★ (504)
wp.org #17 ↑1 4 too low 14 
WPC Smart Quick View for WooCommerce 80K+ · 4.9★ (31)
wp.org #9 ↓1 5 too high 15 
Advanced Free Shipping for WooCommerce 40K+ · 4.8★ (122)
wp.org #14 1 too high 16 
Post Views Counter 100K+ · 4.9★ (1238)
wp.org #23 7 too low 17 
Advanced WordPress Backgrounds 30K+ · 4.8★ (44)
wp.org #11 ↑11 6 too high 18 
GiveWP – Donation Plugin and Fundraising Platform 100K+ · 4.6★ (708)
wp.org #21 ↓1 3 too low 19 
All in One SEO – AI SEO Plugin to Boost SEO Rankings & Traffic (Schema, Local SEO, Sitemap & SEO Insights) 2M+ · 4.7★ (5231)
wp.org #22 ↓1 3 too low 20 
View Admin As 9K+ · 4.9★ (49)
wp.org #19 1 too high 21 
Advanced iFrame 40K+ · 4.4★ (54)
wp.org #18 ↓2 3 too high 22 
Security Optimizer – The All-In-One Protection Plugin 1M+ · 4.5★ (157)
wp.org #24 2 too low 23 
YITH WooCommerce Quick View 80K+ · 3.8★ (27)
wp.org #16 ↓2 7 too high 24 Advanced Import 80K+ · 4.4★ (7) thin reviews
wp.org #15 ↓2 9 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.