wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “authenticated mail”
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 “authenticated mail”, 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
Emerge Mail – SMTP, Newsletters & Email Marketing shows at wp.org #9 but places #20 on merit, a gap of 11 places. Its 10+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 1 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
Buried gem
Contact Form Clean and Simple places #9 on merit, 4.7★ from 195 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.
FluentSMTP – WP Mail SMTP Plugin with Amazon SES, SendGrid, Mailgun, Postmark, Cloudflare, toSend, Gmail and Any SMTP 700K+ · 4.8★ (410)
wp.org #1 2 
YaySMTP – WP Mail SMTP with Email Logs, Tracking & Reports 10K+ · 4.9★ (45)
wp.org #3 1 too low 3 
Easy WP SMTP – WordPress SMTP and Email Logs: Gmail SMTP, Office 365, Outlook, Custom SMTP, and more 500K+ · 4.6★ (709)
wp.org #5 2 too low 4 
Zoho Mail for WordPress 20K+ · 3.7★ (42)
wp.org #2 2 too high 5 
Post SMTP – Complete Email Delivery and SMTP Solution with Email Logs, Alerts, Backup SMTP & Mobile App 300K+ · 4.7★ (528)
wp.org #6 1 too low 6 
GSheetConnector – CF7 Google Sheets Connector & Save CF7 Entries to Database 40K+ · 4.4★ (129)
wp.org #7 1 too low 7 
WPO365 | MICROSOFT 365 GRAPH MAILER 10K+ · 5.0★ (40)
wp.org #12 ↑1 5 too low 8 
Drag and Drop Multiple File Upload for Contact Form 7 60K+ · 4.8★ (94)
wp.org #18 10 too low 9 Contact Form Clean and Simple 7K+ · 4.7★ (195)
wp.org #20 11 too low 10 
SureMail – SMTP and Email Logs Plugin with Amazon SES, Postmark, and Other Providers 200K+ · 4.7★ (25)
wp.org #11 ↑1 1 too low 11 
Meow Mailer – Free SMTP, Everything Included 900+ · 5.0★ (26)
wp.org #13 2 too low 12 
Pro Mail SMTP 300+ · 4.4★ (5) thin reviews
wp.org #4 8 too high 13 
Job Postings 10K+ · 4.4★ (58)
wp.org #24 11 too low 14 
Affiliate Super Assistent 1K+ · 4.6★ (36)
wp.org #23 9 too low 15 
SmartSMTP 2K+ · 4.7★ (3) thin reviews
wp.org #8 ↑2 7 too high 16 
Bit SMTP – Easy SMTP Solution with Email Logs 2K+ · 3.9★ (15) thin reviews
wp.org #16 17 
WP SAML Auth 7K+ · 4.5★ (8) thin reviews
wp.org #17 18 
Track Geolocation Of Users Using Contact Form 7 800+ · 5.0★ (4) thin reviews
wp.org #14 4 too high 19 
Bentostudio Mail 40+ · 0.0★ (0) thin reviews
wp.org #10 ↑1 9 too high 20 Emerge Mail – SMTP, Newsletters & Email Marketing 10+ · 5.0★ (1) thin reviews
wp.org #9 ↓1 11 too high 21 
Casa Mail 10+ · 0.0★ (0) thin reviews
wp.org #19 2 too high 22 
Private Website – Login Required 300+ · 5.0★ (1) thin reviews
wp.org #15 7 too high 23 
Super Duper SMTP Mail Bridge 20+ · 0.0★ (0) thin reviews
wp.org #21 ↑1 2 too high 24 
Mailster SendGrid Integration 900+ · 5.0★ (1) thin reviews
wp.org #22 ↓1 2 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.