wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “chat forms”
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 “chat forms”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 4 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 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
ChatHelp – Click to Chat Button, Chat to Order for WooCommerce & Floating Chat Form shows at wp.org #10 but places #23 on merit, a gap of 13 places. Its 2K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 4.4★ average from 9 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
Buried gem
3CX Free Live Chat, Calls & Messaging places #11 on merit, 4.6★ from 820 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.
Chatway Live Chat – AI Chatbot, Customer Support, FAQ & Helpdesk Customer Service & Chat Buttons 30K+ · 5.0★ (775)
wp.org #1 2 
WPForms – AI Form Builder for WordPress – Contact Forms, Payment Forms, Survey Form, Quiz & More 5M+ · 4.8★ (14387)
wp.org #2 3 
Click to Chat – HoliThemes 600K+ · 4.8★ (131)
wp.org #3 4 
Social Chat – Click To Chat App Button 200K+ · 4.9★ (696) not PHP-current
wp.org #4 5 
Floating Chat Widget: Contact Chat Icons, Telegram Chat, Line Messenger, WeChat, Email, SMS, Call Button – Chaty 300K+ · 5.0★ (1244)
wp.org #6 1 too low 6 
Anti-Spam, Spam FireWall by CleanTalk 200K+ · 4.8★ (3220)
wp.org #7 1 too low 7 
Fluent Forms – Customizable Contact Forms, Survey, Quiz, & Conversational Form Builder 800K+ · 4.8★ (807)
wp.org #5 2 too high 8 
Tidio – Live Chat & AI Chatbots 70K+ · 4.8★ (395) not PHP-current
wp.org #9 1 too low 9 
Simple Ajax Chat – Add a Fast, Secure Chat Box 2K+ · 4.9★ (215)
wp.org #11 2 too low 10 
Sticky Chat Widget – Floating Chat Icons, Contact Form, Call, Click to Chat, Email & Message Buttons 10K+ · 5.0★ (39)
wp.org #8 2 too high 11 3CX Free Live Chat, Calls & Messaging 100K+ · 4.6★ (820)
wp.org #15 4 too low 12 
Better Messages – Chat Rooms, Group Chat, Private Messages & AI Chat Bots 10K+ · 4.8★ (142)
wp.org #12 13 
Database Addon for Contact Form 7 – CFDB7 600K+ · 5.0★ (1875)
wp.org #18 5 too low 14 
Ultra Addons for Contact Form 7 60K+ · 4.8★ (107)
wp.org #13 1 too high 15 
HubSpot All-In-One Marketing – Forms, Popups, Live Chat 200K+ · 4.3★ (207)
wp.org #14 1 too high 16 
Formidable Forms – Contact Form, Survey, Quiz, Payment, Calculator Form & Custom Form Builder 300K+ · 4.8★ (1387)
wp.org #23 7 too low 17 
Joinchat – Enhanced “click to chat” 700K+ · 4.7★ (189)
wp.org #16 1 too high 18 
SureForms – Contact Form Builder, AI Forms, Payment Form, Survey & Quiz 500K+ · 4.8★ (102)
wp.org #17 1 too high 19 
Live Chat by Formilla – Real-time Chat & Chatbots Plugin 2K+ · 4.8★ (116)
wp.org #19 20 
Chat Button & Custom ChatGPT-Powered Bot by GetButton.io 20K+ · 4.5★ (175)
wp.org #21 1 too low 21 
Tawk.To Live Chat 100K+ · 4.6★ (142)
wp.org #24 3 too low 22 
Wise Chat 4K+ · 4.4★ (105)
wp.org #22 23 ChatHelp – Click to Chat Button, Chat to Order for WooCommerce & Floating Chat Form 2K+ · 4.4★ (9) thin reviews
wp.org #10 13 too high 24 
Contact Form to Chat Apps | Click to Chat to Order – FormyChat 3K+ · 5.0★ (6) thin reviews
wp.org #20 4 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.