wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “contribution”

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 “contribution”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 6 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

Google Analytics for WooCommerce shows at wp.org #8 but places #20 on merit, a gap of 12 places. Its 100K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 2.8★ average from 119 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Simple Custom Post Order places #11 on merit, 4.8★ from 587 reviews, but shows at wp.org #24. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin signals wp.org

Site Kit by Google – Analytics, Search Console, AdSense, Speed 5M+ · 4.2★ (1012) wp.org #1 2

Advanced Custom Fields (ACF®) 2M+ · 4.5★ (1440) heavy footprint wp.org #2 ↑1 3

bbPress 100K+ · 3.9★ (343) wp.org #3 ↓1 4

Slim Maintenance Mode 10K+ · 5.0★ (63) wp.org #4 ↑1 5

Pods – Custom Content Types and Fields 100K+ · 4.8★ (418) wp.org #6 ↓2 1 too low 6

Custom Taxonomy Order 50K+ · 4.8★ (96) wp.org #5 ↑1 1 too high 7

FluentSMTP – WP Mail SMTP Plugin with Amazon SES, SendGrid, Mailgun, Postmark, Cloudflare, toSend, Gmail and Any SMTP 700K+ · 4.8★ (410) wp.org #9 ↓2 2 too low 8

Docket Cache – Object Cache Accelerator 20K+ · 4.9★ (50) wp.org #7 ↑2 1 too high 9

Activity Log – Monitor User and Agent Changes 200K+ · 4.3★ (74) wp.org #11 ↑3 2 too low 10

Donation Platform for WooCommerce: Fundraising & Donation Management 7K+ · 4.9★ (99) wp.org #17 ↓4 7 too low 11

Simple Custom Post Order 300K+ · 4.8★ (587) wp.org #24 ↓1 13 too low 12

Say What? 40K+ · 4.3★ (92) wp.org #15 ↑1 3 too low 13

Genesis eNews Extended 40K+ · 4.7★ (28) wp.org #12 ↓1 1 too high 14

Shipping Simulator for WooCommerce 6K+ · 5.0★ (40) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #10 4 too high 15

Embed Privacy 10K+ · 4.9★ (26) wp.org #16 ↓6 1 too low 16

Disable and Remove Google Fonts | GDPR & DSGVO friendly 100K+ · 4.5★ (46) heavy footprint wp.org #14 ↓2 2 too high 17

Zotpress 2K+ · 4.9★ (66) wp.org #23 6 too low 18

Cyr to Lat Enhanced 80K+ · 4.6★ (51) wp.org #21 ↓1 3 too low 19

Widget Disable 10K+ · 4.8★ (24) thin reviews wp.org #18 ↓1 1 too high 20

Google Analytics for WooCommerce 100K+ · 2.8★ (119) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #8 12 too high 21

WP Swiper 4K+ · 5.0★ (24) thin reviews wp.org #20 ↓2 1 too high 22

Zeno Font Resizer 5K+ · 4.6★ (20) thin reviews wp.org #22 23

Helper Lite for PageSpeed 2K+ · 5.0★ (9) thin reviews wp.org #19 4 too high 24

SMNTCS Disable REST API User Endpoints 8K+ · 5.0★ (2) thin reviews wp.org #13 ↑2 11 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.