wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “comment meta”
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 meta”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 13 of the top 20. 1 plugin is 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
Comments Extra Fields For Post,Pages and CPT shows at wp.org #9 but places #22 on merit, a gap of 13 places. Its 500+ installs carry it up the search order; its 4.2★ average from 9 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
Buried gem
Advanced Database Cleaner – Optimize & Clean Database to Speed Up Site Performance places #9 on merit, 4.9★ from 1962 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.
Meta Box – A Framework for Dynamic Websites 500K+ · 4.8★ (165)
wp.org #1 2 
Import and export users and customers 70K+ · 4.7★ (259)
wp.org #3 ↑1 1 too low 3 
Meta Tag Manager 70K+ · 4.8★ (84) not PHP-current
wp.org #2 1 too high 4 
Elementor Website Builder – more than just a page builder 10M+ · 4.5★ (7322) not PHP-currentheavy footprint
wp.org #4 ↓1 5 
WP Fastest Cache – WordPress Cache Plugin 1M+ · 4.9★ (4228)
wp.org #6 ↑1 1 too low 6 
Simple Comment Editing 2K+ · 4.8★ (55)
wp.org #5 ↑1 1 too high 7 
WP Bulk Delete 90K+ · 4.6★ (131)
wp.org #10 3 too low 8 
WP-Sweep 100K+ · 4.7★ (138)
wp.org #11 3 too low 9 Advanced Database Cleaner – Optimize & Clean Database to Speed Up Site Performance 100K+ · 4.9★ (1962)
wp.org #20 ↓12 11 too low 10 
Disqus Comment System 30K+ · 2.7★ (219)
wp.org #7 ↑5 3 too high 11 
Advanced Custom Fields (ACF®) 2M+ · 4.5★ (1440) heavy footprint
wp.org #14 ↑5 3 too low 12 
Polylang 900K+ · 4.7★ (3004)
wp.org #22 ↓1 10 too low 13 
Jetpack – AI Agents & MCP, Security, Backup & Analytics 3M+ · 3.7★ (2408)
wp.org #15 2 too low 14 
The SEO Framework – Fast, Automated, Effortless. 200K+ · 4.9★ (380) not PHP-current
wp.org #18 4 too low 15 
Admin and Site Enhancements (ASE) 200K+ · 5.0★ (423)
wp.org #24 ↓4 9 too low 16 
VS Meta Description 3K+ · 4.4★ (16) thin reviews
wp.org #8 ↓3 8 too high 17 
GenerateBlocks 200K+ · 4.9★ (122)
wp.org #23 6 too low 18 
WordPress Importer 2M+ · 3.1★ (327)
wp.org #13 5 too high 19 
SureRank SEO – Meta Tags, Social Preview, XML Sitemap, Schema & Open Graph 300K+ · 4.8★ (51)
wp.org #21 ↓3 2 too low 20 
Genial Comments 4K+ · 4.8★ (20) thin reviews
wp.org #17 ↓2 3 too high 21 
JSM Show Post Metadata 10K+ · 5.0★ (12) thin reviews
wp.org #16 ↓2 5 too high 22 Comments Extra Fields For Post,Pages and CPT 500+ · 4.2★ (9) thin reviews
wp.org #9 13 too high 23 
JSM Show User Metadata 3K+ · 5.0★ (2) thin reviews
wp.org #19 ↓2 4 too high 24 
JSM Show Comment Metadata 30+ · 5.0★ (1) thin reviews
wp.org #12 ↑4 12 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.