wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “cloud platform”
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 “cloud platform”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 10 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
LegalWeb Cloud shows at wp.org #8 but places #21 on merit, a gap of 13 places. Its 300+ 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
Backup Migration places #11 on merit, 4.9★ from 1338 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.
Forminator Forms – Contact Form, Payment Form & Custom Form Builder 600K+ · 4.8★ (2144)
wp.org #1 2 
Wordfence Security – Firewall, Malware Scan, and Login Security 5M+ · 4.7★ (5040)
wp.org #2 3 
Elementor Website Builder – more than just a page builder 10M+ · 4.5★ (7322)
wp.org #4 1 too low 4 
Translate WordPress with GTranslate 900K+ · 4.9★ (4962)
wp.org #6 ↑1 2 too low 5 
All-in-One WP Migration and Backup 5M+ · 4.5★ (7676)
wp.org #7 ↑1 2 too low 6 
Anti-Spam, Spam FireWall by CleanTalk 200K+ · 4.8★ (3221)
wp.org #10 ↑1 4 too low 7 
Broken Link Checker 500K+ · 3.8★ (605)
wp.org #5 ↑1 2 too high 8 
Media Cloud Sync 1K+ · 4.9★ (13) thin reviews
wp.org #3 5 too high 9 
OttoKit: All-in-One Automation Platform 90K+ · 4.9★ (125)
wp.org #9 ↑1 10 
JetBackup – Backup, Restore & Migrate 200K+ · 4.5★ (1056)
wp.org #13 ↑1 3 too low 11 Backup Migration 80K+ · 4.9★ (1338)
wp.org #16 5 too low 12 
Widgets for Google Reviews 1M+ · 4.9★ (2667)
wp.org #14 2 too low 13 
FluentSMTP – WP Mail SMTP Plugin with Amazon SES, SendGrid, Mailgun, Postmark, Cloudflare, toSend, Gmail and Any SMTP 700K+ · 4.8★ (410)
wp.org #12 ↑1 1 too high 14 
Better Messages – Chat Rooms, Group Chat, Private Messages & AI Chat Bots 10K+ · 4.8★ (142)
wp.org #20 ↑2 6 too low 15 
SureCart – Ecommerce Made Easy For Selling Physical Products, Digital Downloads, Subscriptions, Donations, & Payments 80K+ · 4.8★ (289)
wp.org #23 8 too low 16 
Spam Protection | Maspik 30K+ · 4.7★ (87)
wp.org #22 ↓1 6 too low 17 
BotBlocker Security – Complete security platform 3K+ · 5.0★ (11) thin reviews
wp.org #11 ↓6 6 too high 18 
WP-Stateless – Google Cloud Storage 4K+ · 3.9★ (51)
wp.org #15 3 too high 19 
Autoship Cloud for WooCommerce Subscription Products 100+ · 4.6★ (37)
wp.org #18 1 too high 20 
Cloudways WordPress Migrator 10K+ · 4.2★ (36)
wp.org #17 3 too high 21 LegalWeb Cloud 300+ · 5.0★ (1) thin reviews
wp.org #8 ↑1 13 too high 22 
Wawp Country Code & Chat Widget for WooCommerce 400+ · 0.0★ (0) thin reviews
wp.org #19 ↑1 3 too high 23 
SureFeedback Cloud 20+ · 5.0★ (1) thin reviews
wp.org #24 ↓5 1 too low 24 
Impact: Partnership Cloud 300+ · 2.0★ (4) thin reviews
wp.org #21 ↑3 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.