wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “blanks”

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 “blanks”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 14 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

Target Blank to Button Block shows at wp.org #5 but places #18 on merit, a gap of 13 places. Its 100+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 3 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Starter Templates: AI-Powered Website Templates for Elementor & Gutenberg places #11 on merit, 4.9★ from 4755 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 signals wp.org

Yoast SEO – Advanced SEO with real-time guidance and built-in AI 10M+ · 4.8★ (27821) wp.org #1 2

Blank Slate 10K+ · 5.0★ (23) thin reviews wp.org #2 3

Anti-Spam, Spam FireWall by CleanTalk 200K+ · 4.8★ (3220) wp.org #7 4 too low 4

All-In-One Security (AIOS) – Security and Firewall 1M+ · 4.7★ (1720) wp.org #6 2 too low 5

Smart Slider 3 800K+ · 4.9★ (1125) wp.org #9 4 too low 6

Quiz and Survey Master (QSM) – Quiz Maker & Survey Maker 40K+ · 4.7★ (1282) wp.org #13 7 too low 7

Quiz Maker by AYS 20K+ · 4.9★ (601) wp.org #12 5 too low 8

Ad Inserter – Ad Manager & AdSense Ads 300K+ · 4.9★ (2433) wp.org #16 8 too low 9

Super Blank 9K+ · 4.5★ (8) thin reviews wp.org #3 6 too high 10

Masteriyo LMS – LMS Course Builder, Quizzes & Certificates 6K+ · 4.8★ (184) throws errorsnot PHP-currentheavy footprint wp.org #8 2 too high 11

Starter Templates: AI-Powered Website Templates for Elementor & Gutenberg 1M+ · 4.9★ (4755) wp.org #21 10 too low 12

Simple Share Buttons Adder 40K+ · 4.3★ (627) wp.org #19 7 too low 13

Blank Footnotes 300+ · 5.0★ (6) thin reviews wp.org #4 9 too high 14

Fullwidth Templates for Any Theme & Page Builder 20K+ · 4.7★ (42) wp.org #15 1 too low 15

Create Block Theme 20K+ · 4.8★ (38) wp.org #18 3 too low 16

Interactive Content – H5P 40K+ · 4.8★ (61) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #17 1 too low 17

Pluginception 4K+ · 5.0★ (23) thin reviews wp.org #20 3 too low 18

Target Blank to Button Block 100+ · 5.0★ (3) thin reviews wp.org #5 13 too high 19

E2Pdf – Export Pdf Tool for WordPress 10K+ · 4.7★ (59) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #23 4 too low 20

WPC Name Your Price for WooCommerce 6K+ · 4.4★ (19) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews wp.org #14 6 too high 21

Custom Field Template 30K+ · 4.0★ (24) thin reviews wp.org #24 3 too low 22

Blank 800+ · 0.0★ (0) thin reviews wp.org #10 12 too high 23 F FameTheme Demo Importer 30K+ · 5.0★ (1) thin reviews wp.org #11 12 too high 24

Table for Divi 1K+ · 3.7★ (3) thin reviews wp.org #22 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.