Plugin Pulse Beta
← Rankings

wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “client sites”

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 “client sites”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 15 of the top 20. 3 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

Automattic For Agencies Client shows at wp.org #3 but places #18 on merit, a gap of 15 places. Its 20K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 2 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

MainWP Dashboard: Self-hosted WordPress Management for Agencies places #10 on merit, 4.9★ from 2354 reviews, but shows at wp.org #23. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Starter Templates: AI-Powered Website Templates for Elementor & Gutenberg 1M+ · 4.9★ (4755) wp.org #1 2 InfiniteWP Client 200K+ · 4.4★ (177) wp.org #2 3 SureFeedback Client Site 5K+ · 4.0★ (39) wp.org #4 1 too low 4 SEOPress – AI SEO Plugin & On-site SEO 300K+ · 4.8★ (1267) wp.org #13 ↓1 9 too low 5 WPVibe – MCP Server for WordPress, works with Claude, ChatGPT & other AI MCP agents 100K+ · 5.0★ (195) wp.org #12 ↑1 7 too low 6 WooCommerce 7M+ · 4.5★ (4833) wp.org #9 ↓2 3 too low 7 MainWP Child – Securely Connects to the MainWP Dashboard to Manage Multiple Sites 700K+ · 5.0★ (71) wp.org #6 1 too high 8 Simply Static – The Static Site Generator 30K+ · 4.5★ (195) wp.org #14 6 too low 9 Elementor Website Builder – more than just a page builder 10M+ · 4.5★ (7323) wp.org #15 6 too low 10 MainWP Dashboard: Self-hosted WordPress Management for Agencies 20K+ · 4.9★ (2354) wp.org #23 13 too low 11 Jetpack CRM – Clients, Leads, Invoices, Billing, Email Marketing, & Automation 30K+ · 4.3★ (152) wp.org #17 ↓1 6 too low 12 Burst Statistics – Simple WordPress Analytics (Google Analytics Alternative) 200K+ · 4.9★ (186) wp.org #21 ↑3 9 too low 13 Jetpack – AI Agents & MCP, Security, Backup & Analytics 3M+ · 3.7★ (2408) wp.org #18 5 too low 14 Redirection 2M+ · 4.4★ (703) wp.org #19 ↓2 5 too low 15 All in One SEO – AI SEO Plugin to Boost SEO Rankings & Traffic (Schema, Local SEO, Sitemap & SEO Insights) 2M+ · 4.7★ (5231) wp.org #22 ↓2 7 too low 16 WP Client Reports 6K+ · 5.0★ (5) wp.org #5 11 too high 17 Ultimate Client Dash 2K+ · 4.8★ (10) wp.org #7 ↑1 10 too high 18 Automattic For Agencies Client 20K+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #3 15 too high 19 Shop as Client for WooCommerce – Manual, Phone & Email Orders 500+ · 5.0★ (9) wp.org #16 3 too high 20 Simple Client Dashboard 2K+ · 4.5★ (26) wp.org #24 ↓1 4 too low 21 Woostify Sites Library 10K+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #11 10 too high 22 Kadence Central – Site Management, Backups, Security, and Reporting 30K+ · 4.2★ (5) wp.org #20 ↓2 2 too high 23 Pronamic Client 600+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #8 ↑1 15 too high 24 aThemes Starter Sites 30K+ · 2.0★ (2) wp.org #10 14 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.