wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “crm plugin”
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 “crm plugin”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 14 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
Buying Buddy IDX CRM – Real Estate MLS Plugin shows at wp.org #11 but places #22 on merit, a gap of 11 places. Its 500+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 6 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
Buried gem
Fluent Forms – Customizable Contact Forms, Survey, Quiz, & Conversational Form Builder places #9 on merit, 4.8★ from 807 reviews, but shows at wp.org #15. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.
FluentCRM – Email Newsletter, Automation, Email Marketing, Email Campaigns, Optins, Leads, and CRM Solution 80K+ · 4.8★ (250)
wp.org #1 2 
Jetpack CRM – Clients, Leads, Invoices, Billing, Email Marketing, & Automation 30K+ · 4.3★ (152)
wp.org #2 3 
FluentSMTP – WP Mail SMTP Plugin with Amazon SES, SendGrid, Mailgun, Postmark, Cloudflare, toSend, Gmail and Any SMTP 700K+ · 4.8★ (410)
wp.org #3 4 
Jetpack – AI Agents & MCP, Security, Backup & Analytics 3M+ · 3.7★ (2408)
wp.org #6 ↓2 2 too low 5 
CRM Perks Forms – WordPress Form Builder 1K+ · 4.8★ (32)
wp.org #4 ↑1 1 too high 6 
Forminator Forms – Contact Form, Payment Form & Custom Form Builder 600K+ · 4.8★ (2143)
wp.org #10 ↑3 4 too low 7 
WPForms – AI Form Builder for WordPress – Contact Forms, Payment Forms, Survey Form, Quiz & More 5M+ · 4.8★ (14387)
wp.org #12 ↑6 5 too low 8 
WP Gravity Forms Dynamics CRM 300+ · 4.9★ (20) thin reviews
wp.org #5 ↑1 3 too high 9 Fluent Forms – Customizable Contact Forms, Survey, Quiz, & Conversational Form Builder 800K+ · 4.8★ (807)
wp.org #15 ↓4 6 too low 10 
WP Zoho for Contact Form 7, WPForms, Elementor, Formidable and Ninja Forms – CRM, Bigin 3K+ · 5.0★ (44) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #7 ↑1 3 too high 11 
Database for Contact Form 7, WPforms, Elementor forms 60K+ · 4.8★ (124)
wp.org #14 ↑2 3 too low 12 
WP Dynamics CRM for Contact Form 7, WPForms, Elementor, Formidable and Ninja Forms 300+ · 4.9★ (19) thin reviews
wp.org #8 ↓1 4 too high 13 
CRM Perks Integration for Gravity Forms and Salesforce 1K+ · 4.9★ (139)
wp.org #18 ↑2 5 too low 14 
CartFlows – Funnel Builder & Checkout Plugin for WooCommerce 200K+ · 4.8★ (517) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #19 5 too low 15 
Integration for WooCommerce and Salesforce 100+ · 4.9★ (45)
wp.org #17 ↑2 2 too low 16 
Integration for WooCommerce and Zoho CRM, Books, Invoice, Inventory, Bigin 1K+ · 5.0★ (84)
wp.org #23 ↓9 7 too low 17 
WP Gravity Forms Zoho CRM and Bigin 400+ · 5.0★ (25)
wp.org #20 ↑2 3 too low 18 
Groundhogg — CRM, Newsletters, and Marketing Automation 2K+ · 4.8★ (150) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #24 ↓14 6 too low 19 
Zoho CRM Lead Magnet 3K+ · 3.1★ (25) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #9 10 too high 20 
WP-CRM System – Manage Clients and Projects 700+ · 3.9★ (15) thin reviews
wp.org #16 ↑1 4 too high 21 
Lead Form Data Collection to CRM 400+ · 4.0★ (46) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #22 ↓1 1 too low 22 Buying Buddy IDX CRM – Real Estate MLS Plugin 500+ · 5.0★ (6) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews
wp.org #11 ↑1 11 too high 23 
Bit CRM: Sales CRM Manage Lead, Contact, Deal, Invoice, Client Portal & Collect Payment 300+ · 5.0★ (4) thin reviews
wp.org #13 ↑2 10 too high 24 
Extended CRM for Users Insights 400+ · 5.0★ (2) thin reviews
wp.org #21 ↑2 3 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.