wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “comment menu”
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 “comment menu”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 12 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
Comment Link Remove and Other Comment Tools shows at wp.org #8 but places #18 on merit, a gap of 10 places. Its 8K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 4.1★ average from 15 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
Buried gem
Ivory Search – WordPress Search Plugin places #7 on merit, 4.9★ from 1562 reviews, but shows at wp.org #17. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.
Admin Menu Editor 300K+ · 4.6★ (312)
wp.org #1 2 
Elementor Website Builder – more than just a page builder 10M+ · 4.5★ (7322)
wp.org #2 3 
Nav Menu Roles 70K+ · 4.9★ (219)
wp.org #3 ↑1 4 
Sticky Menu & Sticky Header 90K+ · 4.7★ (763)
wp.org #5 ↓2 1 too low 5 
Comments – wpDiscuz 60K+ · 4.7★ (581)
wp.org #6 1 too low 6 
Disable Comments 1M+ · 4.7★ (281)
wp.org #4 ↑1 2 too high 7 Ivory Search – WordPress Search Plugin 90K+ · 4.9★ (1562)
wp.org #17 ↓2 10 too low 8 
Jetpack – AI Agents & MCP, Security, Backup & Analytics 3M+ · 3.7★ (2408)
wp.org #10 ↑8 2 too low 9 
Admin and Site Enhancements (ASE) 200K+ · 5.0★ (423)
wp.org #15 ↓1 6 too low 10 
Wordfence Security – Firewall, Malware Scan, and Login Security 5M+ · 4.7★ (5040)
wp.org #16 6 too low 11 
All-In-One Security (AIOS) – Security and Firewall 1M+ · 4.7★ (1720)
wp.org #18 ↓1 7 too low 12 
Simple Comment Editing 2K+ · 4.8★ (55)
wp.org #11 ↓1 1 too high 13 
WP Bottom Menu 20K+ · 4.5★ (23) thin reviews
wp.org #9 ↓1 4 too high 14 
Disable Comments 100K+ · 3.8★ (25)
wp.org #7 ↑2 7 too high 15 
Orbit Fox: Duplicate Page, Menu Icons, SVG Support, Cookie Notice, Custom Fonts & More 100K+ · 4.8★ (317)
wp.org #24 9 too low 16 
Ajaxify Comments – Ajax and Lazy Loading Comments 3K+ · 4.8★ (91)
wp.org #19 3 too low 17 
Comment Reply Email Notification 3K+ · 4.8★ (33)
wp.org #14 ↓1 3 too high 18 Comment Link Remove and Other Comment Tools 8K+ · 4.1★ (15) thin reviews
wp.org #8 ↓1 10 too high 19 
Disqus Comment System 30K+ · 2.7★ (219)
wp.org #12 ↓1 7 too high 20 
Category Posts in Custom Menu 2K+ · 4.8★ (43)
wp.org #22 2 too low 21 
Automatically Hierarchic Categories in Menu 2K+ · 4.6★ (13) thin reviews
wp.org #13 ↓1 8 too high 22 
Comments – GraphComment | AI-Moderated Comment System 400+ · 4.7★ (30)
wp.org #21 1 too high 23 
WP Comment Humility 100+ · 5.0★ (6) thin reviews
wp.org #20 3 too high 24 
Comment Approved Notifier Extended 500+ · 5.0★ (7) thin reviews
wp.org #23 1 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.