wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “block comments”

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 “block comments”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 7 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

Simply Disable Comments shows at wp.org #10 but places #21 on merit, a gap of 11 places. Its 8K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 4 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

All-In-One Security (AIOS) – Security and Firewall places #10 on merit, 4.7★ from 1720 reviews, but shows at wp.org #15. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin signals wp.org

Disable Comments 1M+ · 4.7★ (281) wp.org #1 2

Wordfence Security – Firewall, Malware Scan, and Login Security 5M+ · 4.7★ (5040) wp.org #2 3

Anti-Spam, Spam FireWall by CleanTalk 200K+ · 4.8★ (3221) wp.org #3 4

Kadence Blocks — Page Builder Toolkit for Gutenberg Editor 600K+ · 4.8★ (333) wp.org #4 ↑2 5

Comments – wpDiscuz 60K+ · 4.7★ (581) wp.org #7 2 too low 6

Elementor Website Builder – more than just a page builder 10M+ · 4.5★ (7322) wp.org #8 ↑1 2 too low 7

IP Location Block 10K+ · 4.5★ (35) wp.org #5 ↓1 2 too high 8

The Icon Block 40K+ · 5.0★ (29) wp.org #6 ↓1 2 too high 9

Jetpack – AI Agents & MCP, Security, Backup & Analytics 3M+ · 3.7★ (2408) wp.org #9 ↓1 10

All-In-One Security (AIOS) – Security and Firewall 1M+ · 4.7★ (1720) wp.org #15 ↓2 5 too low 11

Nexter Blocks – Gutenberg Blocks, Page Builder & AI Website Builder 9K+ · 4.8★ (90) wp.org #11 ↑13 12

PublishPress Blocks – Block Controls, Block Visibility, Block Permissions 20K+ · 4.7★ (204) wp.org #16 ↓1 4 too low 13

Ajaxify Comments – Ajax and Lazy Loading Comments 3K+ · 4.8★ (91) wp.org #14 ↓2 1 too low 14

iQ Block Country 20K+ · 3.9★ (166) wp.org #17 ↓1 3 too low 15

SimpLy Gallery 40K+ · 4.8★ (118) wp.org #24 9 too low 16

Create Block Theme 20K+ · 4.8★ (38) wp.org #19 ↓1 3 too low 17

ActiveLayer Anti-Spam: Spam Protection for Forms & Comments 10K+ · 4.9★ (10) thin reviews wp.org #12 ↑2 5 too high 18

Lazy Load for Comments 2K+ · 4.7★ (28) wp.org #18 ↓1 19 S Subscribe to Comments 10K+ · 3.9★ (14) thin reviews wp.org #13 ↓2 6 too high 20

Highlighting Code Block 10K+ · 4.5★ (20) thin reviews wp.org #20 ↓1 21

Simply Disable Comments 8K+ · 5.0★ (4) thin reviews wp.org #10 11 too high 22

Advanced Post Block – Display Your Posts Exactly How You Want 10K+ · 4.2★ (17) thin reviews wp.org #22 ↓1 23

FluentComments – AJAX Comments, Anti-Spam & Comment Email Notifications 700+ · 4.3★ (6) thin reviews wp.org #23 ↓1 24

Turn Comments Off 1K+ · 5.0★ (2) thin reviews 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.