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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “critical error”

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 “critical error”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 7 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

Vigilant – 100% Free Security Suite: Firewall, 2FA, Login, Headers, Scanner… shows at wp.org #12 but places #20 on merit, a gap of 8 places. Its 3K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 24 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Site Kit by Google – Analytics, Search Console, AdSense, Speed 5M+ · 4.2★ (1012) wp.org #1 2 Hummingbird Performance – Cache & Page Speed Optimization for Core Web Vitals | Critical CSS | Minify CSS | Defer CSS Javascript | CDN 70K+ · 4.7★ (1488) wp.org #3 1 too low 3 LiteSpeed Cache 7M+ · 4.8★ (2778) wp.org #4 1 too low 4 Really Simple Security – Simple and Performant Security (formerly Really Simple SSL) 3M+ · 4.9★ (8869) wp.org #6 ↑1 2 too low 5 Autoptimize 800K+ · 4.7★ (1428) wp.org #5 6 All-In-One Security (AIOS) – Security and Firewall 1M+ · 4.7★ (1720) wp.org #7 ↓1 1 too low 7 Security Plugin, Firewall & Malware Scanner with Auto Removal 40K+ · 4.8★ (397) wp.org #8 1 too low 8 Reduce Unused CSS Solution with Critical CSS For WP 1K+ · 3.8★ (13) wp.org #2 6 too high 9 WP-Optimize – Cache, Compress images, Minify & Clean database to boost page speed & performance 1M+ · 4.8★ (2617) wp.org #10 1 too low 10 WP Fastest Cache – WordPress Cache Plugin 1M+ · 4.9★ (4228) wp.org #11 1 too low 11 The SEO Framework – Fast, Automated, Effortless. 200K+ · 4.9★ (380) wp.org #9 2 too high 12 W3 Total Cache 900K+ · 4.4★ (5420) wp.org #13 1 too low 13 All-in-One WP Migration and Backup 5M+ · 4.5★ (7676) wp.org #18 5 too low 14 Elementor Website Builder – more than just a page builder 10M+ · 4.5★ (7323) wp.org #14 15 10Web Booster – Website speed optimization, Cache & Page Speed optimizer 60K+ · 4.6★ (405) wp.org #19 ↑1 4 too low 16 Asset CleanUp: Page Speed Booster 100K+ · 4.9★ (1564) wp.org #21 5 too low 17 Super Page Cache – Cloudflare Cache, Page Speed & Core Web Vitals 70K+ · 4.8★ (517) wp.org #23 ↑1 6 too low 18 My Calendar – Accessible Event Manager 20K+ · 4.7★ (159) wp.org #20 ↓1 2 too low 19 Speed Optimizer – The All-In-One Performance-Boosting Plugin 1M+ · 4.2★ (641) wp.org #16 ↓1 3 too high 20 Vigilant – 100% Free Security Suite: Firewall, 2FA, Login, Headers, Scanner… 3K+ · 5.0★ (24) wp.org #12 8 too high 21 Security Optimizer – The All-In-One Protection Plugin 1M+ · 4.5★ (157) wp.org #15 ↑1 6 too high 22 BackWPup – WordPress Backup & Restore Plugin 400K+ · 4.0★ (1323) wp.org #24 2 too low 23 Error Sniffing Pug – Tells you what broke 100+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #22 1 too high 24 Easy Critical CSS 70+ · 1.0★ (1) wp.org #17 7 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.