Plugin Pulse Beta
← Rankings

wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “author image”

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 “author image”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 13 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

Easy Author Avatar Image shows at wp.org #4 but places #18 on merit, a gap of 14 places. Its 1K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 2 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Converter for Media – Optimize images | Convert WebP & AVIF places #12 on merit, 4.9★ from 1106 reviews, but shows at wp.org #21. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Co-Authors, Multiple Authors and Guest Authors in an Author Box with PublishPress Authors 20K+ · 4.9★ (114) wp.org #1 2 ShortPixel Image Optimizer – Optimize Images, Convert WebP & AVIF 300K+ · 4.5★ (830) wp.org #3 ↑1 1 too low 3 Simple Author Box 90K+ · 4.3★ (115) wp.org #2 1 too high 4 Slider, Gallery, and Carousel by MetaSlider – Image Slider, Video Slider 500K+ · 4.6★ (743) wp.org #8 4 too low 5 Elementor Website Builder – more than just a page builder 10M+ · 4.5★ (7323) wp.org #9 ↑2 4 too low 6 Molongui Authorship – Author Boxes, Guest Authors & Co-Authors for WordPress 10K+ · 4.7★ (158) wp.org #10 4 too low 7 Featured Image from URL (FIFU) 60K+ · 4.6★ (264) wp.org #11 ↓8 4 too low 8 WP-Optimize – Cache, Compress images, Minify & Clean database to boost page speed & performance 1M+ · 4.8★ (2617) wp.org #13 ↓1 5 too low 9 WP Post Author – Author Box, Multiple Authors, Guest Authors & Custom Avatars 10K+ · 4.2★ (22) wp.org #5 ↑5 4 too high 10 Author Avatars List/Block 4K+ · 4.8★ (32) wp.org #7 3 too high 11 All in One SEO – AI SEO Plugin to Boost SEO Rankings & Traffic (Schema, Local SEO, Sitemap & SEO Insights) 2M+ · 4.7★ (5231) wp.org #12 ↓3 1 too low 12 Converter for Media – Optimize images | Convert WebP & AVIF 500K+ · 4.9★ (1106) wp.org #21 ↓5 9 too low 13 Auto Image Attributes From Filename With Bulk Updater (Add Alt Text, Image Title For Image SEO) 100K+ · 4.8★ (93) wp.org #15 ↓1 2 too low 14 Simple Image Sizes 60K+ · 4.6★ (91) wp.org #17 ↓2 3 too low 15 Guest Author 5K+ · 4.2★ (13) wp.org #6 9 too high 16 Image CAPTCHA for Contact Form 7 and WPForms by HookAndHook (DSGVO/GDPR) 70K+ · 4.7★ (49) wp.org #24 ↓2 8 too low 17 ( (Simply) Guest Author Name 2K+ · 4.7★ (23) wp.org #19 ↓2 2 too low 18 Easy Author Avatar Image 1K+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #4 ↑1 14 too high 19 Author Box WP Lens 900+ · 5.0★ (12) wp.org #16 ↑3 3 too high 20 Easy Image Gallery 4K+ · 4.6★ (41) wp.org #20 21 Osom Author Pro 1K+ · 4.9★ (10) wp.org #18 3 too high 22 VK Post Author Display 10K+ · 4.5★ (8) wp.org #14 ↓1 8 too high 23 About Author 200+ · 4.4★ (5) wp.org #23 ↓2 24 Cool Author Box – For Widget and Post Content 500+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #22 ↓2 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.