Plugin Pulse
← Rankings

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

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 “cropping”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 11 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

Custom Profile Picture – Replace Gravatar with Your Own Images shows at wp.org #14 but places #22 on merit, a gap of 8 places. Its 200+ installs carry it up the search order; its 4.0★ average from 4 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

ShortPixel Image Optimizer – Optimize Images, Convert WebP & AVIF places #12 on merit, 4.5★ from 819 reviews, but shows at wp.org #21. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Slider, Gallery, and Carousel by MetaSlider – Image Slider, Video Slider 500K+ · 4.6★ (739) wp.org #1 2 Optimole – Optimize Images | Convert WebP & AVIF | CDN & Lazy Load | Image Optimization 200K+ · 4.7★ (640) wp.org #3 1 too low 3 Simple Local Avatars 100K+ · 4.6★ (89) wp.org #2 1 too high 4 FooGallery Photo Gallery : Image, Video & Masonry Galleries 100K+ · 4.8★ (988) wp.org #7 3 too low 5 Responsive Gallery Grid 4K+ · 4.7★ (66) wp.org #5 6 Smart Image Resize for WooCommerce 7K+ · 4.6★ (82) wp.org #6 7 Manual Image Crop 8K+ · 4.1★ (56) wp.org #4 3 too high 8 Imagify Image Optimization: Optimize Images | Compress & Convert to WebP/AVIF 1M+ · 4.3★ (1655) wp.org #11 3 too low 9 VS Event List 8K+ · 4.9★ (82) wp.org #10 1 too low 10 Cloudinary – Deliver Images and Videos at Scale 5K+ · 4.0★ (64) wp.org #8 2 too high 11 Image Aspect Ratio Crop Field for Advanced Custom Fields 20K+ · 4.8★ (26) wp.org #9 2 too high 12 ShortPixel Image Optimizer – Optimize Images, Convert WebP & AVIF 300K+ · 4.5★ (819) wp.org #21 9 too low 13 Better Messages – Chat Rooms, Group Chat, Private Messages & AI Chat Bots 10K+ · 4.8★ (142) wp.org #18 5 too low 14 ShortPixel Adaptive Images – WebP, AVIF, CDN, Image Optimization 10K+ · 4.8★ (145) wp.org #15 1 too low 15 Options for Twenty Seventeen 8K+ · 4.8★ (57) wp.org #19 4 too low 16 Publitio Offloading 200+ · 5.0★ (34) wp.org #20 4 too low 17 Gallery Block by Galleryberg: Lightbox with Tiles, Masonry, Square, & Justified Layouts 2K+ · 5.0★ (9) wp.org #13 4 too high 18 Seraphinite Post .DOCX Source 800+ · 4.6★ (45) wp.org #24 6 too low 19 Tockify Events Calendar 2K+ · 4.5★ (19) wp.org #12 7 too high 20 Cloudflare Image Resizing – Optimize & Accelerate Your Images 200+ · 4.5★ (17) wp.org #22 2 too low 21 Grid Gallery – for Photo Gallery, Image Gallery & Portfolio 1K+ · 5.0★ (8) wp.org #23 2 too low 22 Custom Profile Picture – Replace Gravatar with Your Own Images 200+ · 4.0★ (4) wp.org #14 8 too high 23 Presswell Art Direction 80+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #16 7 too high 24 Gallery Showcase for WordPress 100+ · 5.0★ (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.