wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “after content”
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 “after content”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 8 of the top 20. 2 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
Insert Blocks Before or After Posts Content shows at wp.org #5 but places #19 on merit, a gap of 14 places. Its 1K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 4.7★ average from 6 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
Buried gem
Yoast SEO – Advanced SEO with real-time guidance and built-in AI places #9 on merit, 4.8★ from 27821 reviews, but shows at wp.org #15. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.
Add Widget After Content 6K+ · 4.7★ (38)
wp.org #1 2 
Ultimate Before After Image Slider & Gallery – BEAF 30K+ · 4.9★ (107)
wp.org #2 3 
Pods – Custom Content Types and Fields 100K+ · 4.8★ (418)
wp.org #3 4 
Resize Image After Upload 80K+ · 4.8★ (56)
wp.org #4 5 
Content Views – Post Grid & Filter (Shortcode, Blocks, Elementor Widgets) 100K+ · 4.8★ (333) heavy footprint
wp.org #6 ↑1 1 too low 6 
Ultimate Member – User Profile, Registration, Login, Member Directory, Content Restriction & Membership Plugin 200K+ · 4.4★ (1445)
wp.org #8 2 too low 7 
Content Control – The Ultimate Content Restriction Solution! Restrict Content, Create Conditional Blocks & More 40K+ · 4.9★ (575)
wp.org #10 3 too low 8 
WP Content Copy Protection & No Right Click 100K+ · 4.8★ (1138)
wp.org #11 ↓2 3 too low 9 Yoast SEO – Advanced SEO with real-time guidance and built-in AI 10M+ · 4.8★ (27821)
wp.org #15 ↑1 6 too low 10 
Table of Contents Plus – Automatic Table of Contents for Posts & Pages 200K+ · 4.5★ (187)
wp.org #12 ↑3 2 too low 11 
Paid Membership Subscriptions – Effortless Memberships, Recurring Payments & Content Restriction 10K+ · 4.7★ (270)
wp.org #17 6 too low 12 
SSL Insecure Content Fixer 100K+ · 4.8★ (221) not PHP-current
wp.org #14 ↓1 2 too low 13 B Before After Image Comparison Slider for Elementor 10K+ · 4.4★ (96)
wp.org #13 ↓1 14 
Content Aware Sidebars – Fastest Widget Area Plugin 30K+ · 4.9★ (724) not PHP-current
wp.org #22 ↑2 8 too low 15 
Passster – Password Protect Pages and Content 10K+ · 4.2★ (60) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #7 ↓2 8 too high 16 S Simple Membership After Login Redirection 10K+ · 4.8★ (15) thin reviews
wp.org #9 ↑2 7 too high 17 
Secure Copy Content Protection and Content Locking 20K+ · 4.3★ (62)
wp.org #16 ↓2 1 too high 18 
Easy Table of Contents 600K+ · 4.4★ (221)
wp.org #21 ↑1 3 too low 19 Insert Blocks Before or After Posts Content 1K+ · 4.7★ (6) thin reviews
wp.org #5 ↑1 14 too high 20 
Timed Content 5K+ · 4.6★ (41)
wp.org #20 21 
MxChat – AI Chatbot & Content Generation for WordPress 2K+ · 5.0★ (31) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #19 ↓1 2 too high 22 
Download After Email – Subscribe & Download Form Plugin 7K+ · 4.4★ (30)
wp.org #23 1 too low 23 
Before After Image 1K+ · 5.0★ (3) thin reviews
wp.org #18 ↑1 5 too high 24 
Essential Content Types 20K+ · 3.7★ (3) thin reviews
wp.org #24 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.