Plugin Pulse Beta
← Rankings

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

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 “controls”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 10 of the top 20. 2 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

TZM Responsive Block Controls shows at wp.org #7 but places #23 on merit, a gap of 16 places. Its 100+ 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

LiteSpeed Cache places #12 on merit, 4.8★ from 2778 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 Elementor Website Builder – more than just a page builder 10M+ · 4.5★ (7323) wp.org #1 ↑1 2 PublishPress Blocks – Block Controls, Block Visibility, Block Permissions 20K+ · 4.7★ (204) wp.org #2 ↓1 3 Yoast SEO – Advanced SEO with real-time guidance and built-in AI 10M+ · 4.8★ (27821) wp.org #4 ↑1 1 too low 4 UpdraftPlus: WP Backup & Migration Plugin 4M+ · 4.8★ (8706) wp.org #5 ↑1 1 too low 5 PublishPress Capabilities: User Role Access Control, Admin Area Permissions 90K+ · 4.7★ (143) wp.org #6 ↑1 1 too low 6 Groups – Memberships and Access Control 10K+ · 4.8★ (382) wp.org #12 ↓2 6 too low 7 WooCommerce 7M+ · 4.5★ (4833) wp.org #8 1 too low 8 Kadence Blocks — Page Builder Toolkit for Gutenberg Editor 600K+ · 4.8★ (333) wp.org #13 ↑3 5 too low 9 Code Snippets 1M+ · 4.7★ (510) wp.org #11 ↓7 2 too low 10 Block Visibility — Conditional Visibility Control for the Block Editor 40K+ · 4.9★ (108) wp.org #15 ↓4 5 too low 11 Min Max Control – Min Max Quantity & Step Control for WooCommerce 10K+ · 4.7★ (79) wp.org #9 ↑4 2 too high 12 LiteSpeed Cache 7M+ · 4.8★ (2778) wp.org #23 ↓1 11 too low 13 All in One SEO – AI SEO Plugin to Boost SEO Rankings & Traffic (Schema, Local SEO, Sitemap & SEO Insights) 2M+ · 4.7★ (5231) wp.org #18 ↓4 5 too low 14 Complianz GDPR/CCPA Cookie Consent Banner 1M+ · 4.7★ (1668) wp.org #24 10 too low 15 Visibility Controls for Editor Blocks 900+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #3 12 too high 16 Controls for Contact Form 7 (Redirects, Analytics & Tracking) 10K+ · 5.0★ (13) wp.org #10 6 too high 17 VigIA – AI Visibility, Analytics & Control 2K+ · 5.0★ (19) wp.org #14 ↑3 3 too high 18 U Update Control 4K+ · 4.4★ (17) wp.org #19 ↓1 1 too low 19 Better Plugin Compatibility Control 4K+ · 4.3★ (19) wp.org #20 ↓1 1 too low 20 Agent Abilities for MCP – Connect Claude and ChatGPT with Permission Controls and Audit Log 800+ · 4.8★ (5) wp.org #16 ↓4 4 too high 21 Mediavine Control Panel 10K+ · 4.2★ (5) wp.org #17 ↓2 4 too high 22 Menu Visibility Control 700+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #21 ↓1 1 too high 23 TZM Responsive Block Controls 100+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #7 ↑2 16 too high 24 Order Status Control for WooCommerce 4K+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #22 ↓1 2 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.