wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “automatically published”
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 “automatically published”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 8 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
Hostinger Tools shows at wp.org #4 but places #20 on merit, a gap of 16 places. Its 3M+ installs carry it up the search order; its 3.5★ average from 40 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
Buried gem
Customer Reviews for WooCommerce places #8 on merit, 4.8★ from 1539 reviews, but shows at wp.org #14. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.
Rank Math SEO – AI SEO Tools to Dominate SEO Rankings 4M+ · 4.8★ (7520)
wp.org #1 2 
Anti-Spam, Spam FireWall by CleanTalk 200K+ · 4.8★ (3221)
wp.org #2 3 
Schedule Post Changes With PublishPress Future: Unpublish, Delete, Change Status, Trash, Change Categories 100K+ · 4.5★ (172)
wp.org #3 4 
UpdraftPlus: WP Backup & Migration Plugin 4M+ · 4.8★ (8709)
wp.org #7 3 too low 5 
Jetpack – AI Agents & MCP, Security, Backup & Analytics 3M+ · 3.7★ (2408)
wp.org #5 ↓1 6 
Security Plugin, Firewall & Malware Scanner with Auto Removal 40K+ · 4.8★ (397)
wp.org #8 ↑1 2 too low 7 
Custom Permalinks 100K+ · 4.1★ (116)
wp.org #6 ↓1 1 too high 8 Customer Reviews for WooCommerce 80K+ · 4.8★ (1539)
wp.org #14 ↓4 6 too low 9 
LiteSpeed Cache 7M+ · 4.8★ (2778)
wp.org #12 ↑4 3 too low 10 
The SEO Framework – Fast, Automated, Effortless. 200K+ · 4.9★ (380)
wp.org #13 3 too low 11 
Public Post Preview 100K+ · 4.6★ (79)
wp.org #9 ↓1 2 too high 12 
BrikPanel: WooCommerce Dashboard & Analytics, Abandoned Cart Recovery, Order Export, Inventory Management & Bulk Editor 1K+ · 5.0★ (55)
wp.org #10 ↑1 2 too high 13 
WP Fastest Cache – WordPress Cache Plugin 1M+ · 4.9★ (4229)
wp.org #19 6 too low 14 
Activity Log – Monitor User and Agent Changes 200K+ · 4.3★ (74)
wp.org #11 ↑4 3 too high 15 
WP LinkedIn Auto Publish 8K+ · 4.8★ (106)
wp.org #15 ↓3 16 
ShortPixel Image Optimizer – Optimize Images, Convert WebP & AVIF 300K+ · 4.5★ (830)
wp.org #22 ↑1 6 too low 17 
Table of Contents Plus – Automatic Table of Contents for Posts & Pages 200K+ · 4.5★ (187)
wp.org #17 18 
Custom Post Type UI 1M+ · 4.6★ (276)
wp.org #16 2 too high 19 
ManageWP Worker 1M+ · 4.6★ (679)
wp.org #20 ↓2 1 too low 20 Hostinger Tools 3M+ · 3.5★ (40) host-installed base
wp.org #4 ↑2 16 too high 21 
PublishPress Revisions: Duplicate Posts, Submit, Approve and Schedule Content Changes 10K+ · 4.6★ (66)
wp.org #18 ↓4 3 too high 22 
Burst Statistics – Simple WordPress Analytics (Google Analytics Alternative) 200K+ · 4.9★ (186)
wp.org #24 2 too low 23 
Noptin – Newsletter, New Post Notifications & Email Automation 10K+ · 4.5★ (120)
wp.org #23 24 
Nginx Helper 200K+ · 4.4★ (31)
wp.org #21 ↓1 3 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.