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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “blog module”

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 “blog module”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 13 of the top 20. 4 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

Infinity TNC Divi Modules shows at wp.org #7 but places #24 on merit, a gap of 17 places. Its 900+ 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

Hustle – Email Marketing, Lead Generation, Optins, Popups places #9 on merit, 4.4★ from 859 reviews, but shows at wp.org #16. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Rank Math SEO – AI SEO Tools to Dominate SEO Rankings 4M+ · 4.8★ (7507) wp.org #1 2 ElementsKit Elementor Addons – Advanced Widgets & Templates Addons for Elementor 1M+ · 4.9★ (2044) wp.org #2 3 Forminator Forms – Contact Form, Payment Form & Custom Form Builder 600K+ · 4.8★ (2131) wp.org #5 2 too low 4 Elementor Website Builder – more than just a page builder 10M+ · 4.5★ (7308) wp.org #4 5 LiteSpeed Cache 7M+ · 4.8★ (2774) wp.org #9 4 too low 6 Supreme Modules Lite – Divi Theme, Extra Theme and Divi Builder 200K+ · 4.8★ (108) wp.org #8 2 too low 7 Blogmentor – Blog Layouts for Elementor 4K+ · 4.7★ (7) wp.org #3 4 too high 8 Smart Post – Post Grid, Post Carousel, Post Slider Gutenberg Blocks for Blog & News 20K+ · 4.7★ (209) wp.org #10 2 too low 9 Hustle – Email Marketing, Lead Generation, Optins, Popups 80K+ · 4.4★ (859) wp.org #16 ↑3 7 too low 10 Royal Addons for Elementor – Addons and Templates Kit for Elementor 600K+ · 4.8★ (612) wp.org #15 5 too low 11 Jetpack – WP Security, Backup, Speed, & Growth 3M+ · 3.7★ (2407) wp.org #12 ↑1 1 too low 12 Beaver Builder Page Builder – Drag and Drop Website Builder 100K+ · 4.7★ (394) wp.org #18 ↓2 6 too low 13 WP Super Cache 1M+ · 4.3★ (1346) wp.org #17 ↑1 4 too low 14 The Post Grid – Shortcode, Gutenberg Blocks and Elementor Addon for Post Grid 100K+ · 4.8★ (265) wp.org #20 ↑4 6 too low 15 Squad Modules Lite – Free Divi 5 & Divi 4 Modules for Divi Builder 1K+ · 5.0★ (12) wp.org #6 9 too high 16 Divi Carousel Lite – Make Carousels for Divi 5 30K+ · 4.8★ (146) wp.org #23 ↓2 7 too low 17 User Role Editor 700K+ · 4.5★ (288) wp.org #21 ↓1 4 too low 18 Divi Torque Lite 50K+ · 4.7★ (116) wp.org #14 4 too high 19 NinjaFirewall (WP Edition) – Advanced Security Plugin and Firewall 100K+ · 4.9★ (220) wp.org #22 3 too low 20 Divi Carousel Lite – Responsive Carousel & Slider Modules for Divi Builder 6K+ · 3.9★ (19) wp.org #11 9 too high 21 GutenKit – Page Builder Blocks, Patterns, and Templates for Gutenberg Block Editor 80K+ · 4.5★ (47) wp.org #24 3 too low 22 Magazine Blocks – Blog Designer, Magazine & Newspaper Website Builder, Page Builder with Posts Blocks, Post Grid 6K+ · 4.9★ (9) wp.org #19 ↓2 3 too high 23 Blog Importer for HubSpot 60+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #13 ↓1 10 too high 24 Infinity TNC Divi Modules 900+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #7 17 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.