wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “call plugin”
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 “call plugin”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 6 of the top 20. 6 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
Call for Price for WooCommerce shows at wp.org #5 but places #14 on merit, a gap of 9 places. Its 8K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 3.9★ average from 27 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
Buried gem
Ultimate Member – User Profile, Registration, Login, Member Directory, Content Restriction & Membership Plugin places #12 on merit, 4.4★ from 1445 reviews, but shows at wp.org #20. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.
Widgets for Google Reviews 1M+ · 4.9★ (2667)
wp.org #1 2 
UpdraftPlus: WP Backup & Migration Plugin 4M+ · 4.8★ (8708)
wp.org #2 3 
Call Now Button – The Free Click to Call Button for WordPress 200K+ · 4.8★ (102)
wp.org #3 4 
WP Fastest Cache – WordPress Cache Plugin 1M+ · 4.9★ (4228)
wp.org #6 ↑3 2 too low 5 
Members – Membership & User Role Editor Plugin 300K+ · 4.9★ (1281)
wp.org #7 ↓1 2 too low 6 
WP Call Button – Easy Click to Call Button for WordPress 40K+ · 4.7★ (69)
wp.org #4 2 too high 7 
Floating Chat Widget: Contact Chat Icons, Telegram Chat, Line Messenger, WeChat, Email, SMS, Call Button – Chaty 300K+ · 5.0★ (1244)
wp.org #9 ↑1 2 too low 8 
BackWPup – WordPress Backup & Restore Plugin 400K+ · 4.0★ (1323) not PHP-current
wp.org #8 9 
Security Plugin, Firewall & Malware Scanner with Auto Removal 40K+ · 4.8★ (397)
wp.org #13 ↑3 4 too low 10 
FluentSMTP – WP Mail SMTP Plugin with Amazon SES, SendGrid, Mailgun, Postmark, Cloudflare, toSend, Gmail and Any SMTP 700K+ · 4.8★ (410)
wp.org #12 2 too low 11 
GiveWP – Donation Plugin and Fundraising Platform 100K+ · 4.6★ (708) throws errorsnot PHP-currentheavy footprint
wp.org #10 ↓3 1 too high 12 Ultimate Member – User Profile, Registration, Login, Member Directory, Content Restriction & Membership Plugin 200K+ · 4.4★ (1445)
wp.org #20 ↓6 8 too low 13 
Plugin Organizer 10K+ · 4.7★ (227) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #11 2 too high 14 Call for Price for WooCommerce 8K+ · 3.9★ (27) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #5 9 too high 15 
Independent Analytics – WordPress Analytics Plugin 100K+ · 4.8★ (167)
wp.org #22 ↑1 7 too low 16 
GTM4WP – A Google Tag Manager (GTM) plugin for WordPress 700K+ · 4.5★ (155)
wp.org #17 ↓2 1 too low 17 
Payment Plugins for PayPal WooCommerce 80K+ · 4.8★ (127) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #15 ↑5 2 too high 18 
Plugin Check (PCP) 10K+ · 4.5★ (36)
wp.org #14 ↓1 4 too high 19 
Plugin Load Filter 7K+ · 4.8★ (52)
wp.org #23 ↓1 4 too low 20 
Plugin Report 1K+ · 5.0★ (15) thin reviews
wp.org #24 4 too low 21 
Mobile Call Now & Map Buttons 4K+ · 4.9★ (18) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews
wp.org #19 2 too high 22 
WP Plugin Manager – Deactivate plugins per page 3K+ · 4.4★ (23) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews
wp.org #18 4 too high 23 
Mobile Call Buttons 600+ · 5.0★ (1) thin reviews
wp.org #16 ↑1 7 too high 24 
Call To Action Customizable Block 1K+ · 5.0★ (1) thin reviews
wp.org #21 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.