Plugin Pulse Beta
← Rankings

wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “apache log”

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 “apache log”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 13 of the top 20. 1 plugin is 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 the install base is organic or host-pushed, and its risk of being pulled.

Ranked above its merit

SiteGuard WP Plugin shows at wp.org #5 but places #16 on merit, a gap of 11 places. Its 600K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 4.3★ average from 15 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

WP Content Copy Protection & No Right Click places #9 on merit, 4.8★ from 1139 reviews, but shows at wp.org #16. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Redirection 2M+ · 4.4★ (703) wp.org #1 2 LiteSpeed Cache 7M+ · 4.8★ (2778) wp.org #2 3 All-In-One Security (AIOS) – Security and Firewall 1M+ · 4.7★ (1720) wp.org #4 1 too low 4 Really Simple Security – Simple and Performant Security (formerly Really Simple SSL) 3M+ · 4.9★ (8869) wp.org #7 ↑3 3 too low 5 WP Super Cache 1M+ · 4.3★ (1346) wp.org #6 1 too low 6 WP STAGING – Backups & Restore, Migration & Clone Plugin – Cloud Backups, Scheduled Backups 100K+ · 4.8★ (2470) wp.org #11 5 too low 7 Hide My WP Ghost – Security & Firewall 100K+ · 4.5★ (373) wp.org #8 ↑5 1 too low 8 NinjaFirewall (WP Edition) – Advanced Security Plugin and Firewall 100K+ · 4.9★ (220) wp.org #9 ↓2 1 too low 9 WP Content Copy Protection & No Right Click 100K+ · 4.8★ (1139) wp.org #16 7 too low 10 Error Log Viewer by BestWebSoft 5K+ · 4.8★ (9) wp.org #3 7 too high 11 W3 Total Cache 900K+ · 4.4★ (5420) wp.org #17 ↑1 6 too low 12 BackWPup – WordPress Backup & Restore Plugin 400K+ · 4.0★ (1323) wp.org #15 3 too low 13 WPVibe – MCP Server for WordPress, works with Claude, ChatGPT & other AI MCP agents 100K+ · 5.0★ (199) wp.org #18 ↓1 5 too low 14 WPVulnerability 10K+ · 5.0★ (20) wp.org #10 ↓2 4 too high 15 Active Directory Integration / LDAP Integration 4K+ · 4.9★ (211) wp.org #24 9 too low 16 SiteGuard WP Plugin 600K+ · 4.3★ (15) wp.org #5 11 too high 17 XO Security 30K+ · 5.0★ (11) wp.org #14 3 too high 18 FastDup – Fastest WordPress Migration & Duplicator 5K+ · 4.6★ (27) wp.org #19 ↑1 1 too low 19 WPMasterToolKit (WPMTK) – All in one plugin 5K+ · 5.0★ (28) wp.org #23 ↓1 4 too low 20 Agent Abilities for MCP – Connect Claude and ChatGPT with Permission Controls and Audit Log 800+ · 4.8★ (5) wp.org #12 ↓3 8 too high 21 Secure MCP Server for Claude, ChatGPT, Gemini and other AI Agents 8K+ · 5.0★ (10) wp.org #22 ↑1 1 too low 22 All In One Redirection 1K+ · 4.4★ (11) wp.org #21 ↓2 1 too high 23 Forge AI Bot Log – Block AI Bots, Crawler Detection & Verification 90+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #13 ↓1 10 too high 24 WP Output Log File 100+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #20 ↑1 4 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.