wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “disable dns”
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 “disable dns”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 9 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 the install base is organic or host-pushed, and its risk of being pulled.
Ranked above its merit
SpeedyCache – Cache, Optimization, Performance shows at wp.org #9 but places #16 on merit, a gap of 7 places. Its 500K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 4.4★ average from 30 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
Buried gem
WP Encryption: Easy HTTPS / SSL & Free SSL certificate, HTTPS redirect places #7 on merit, 4.9★ from 1146 reviews, but shows at wp.org #11. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.
Disable Bloat for WordPress & WooCommerce 10K+ · 4.8★ (100)
wp.org #2 3 
LiteSpeed Cache 7M+ · 4.8★ (2778)
wp.org #3 ↑3 4 
Anti-Spam, Spam FireWall by CleanTalk 200K+ · 4.8★ (3221)
wp.org #5 ↓1 1 too low 5 
WP Mail SMTP by WPForms – SMTP for Reliable Email Delivery with Gmail, Outlook, Amazon SES, Brevo, Other SMTP & More 4M+ · 4.8★ (5209)
wp.org #6 ↓1 1 too low 6 
Really Simple Security – Simple and Performant Security (formerly Really Simple SSL) 3M+ · 4.9★ (8869)
wp.org #8 2 too low 7 WP Encryption: Easy HTTPS / SSL & Free SSL certificate, HTTPS redirect 50K+ · 4.9★ (1146)
wp.org #11 4 too low 8 
Featherweight 10K+ · 4.1★ (45)
wp.org #4 ↓1 4 too high 9 
Speed Optimizer – The All-In-One Performance-Boosting Plugin 1M+ · 4.2★ (641)
wp.org #7 2 too high 10 
WP Hide & Security Enhancer 50K+ · 4.3★ (275)
wp.org #12 ↑1 2 too low 11 
Post SMTP – Complete Email Delivery and SMTP Solution with Email Logs, Alerts, Backup SMTP & Mobile App 300K+ · 4.7★ (528)
wp.org #15 4 too low 12 
OMGF | GDPR/DSGVO Compliant, Faster Google Fonts. Easy. 300K+ · 4.7★ (213)
wp.org #14 2 too low 13 
Clearfy Cache – WordPress optimization plugin, Minify HTML, CSS & JS, Defer 40K+ · 4.7★ (339)
wp.org #20 7 too low 14 
Vigilant – 100% Free Security Suite: Firewall, 2FA, Login, Headers, Scanner… 3K+ · 5.0★ (24) thin reviews
wp.org #10 4 too high 15 
Powered Cache – Caching and Optimization for WordPress – Easily Improve PageSpeed & Web Vitals Score 3K+ · 4.8★ (58)
wp.org #18 3 too low 16 SpeedyCache – Cache, Optimization, Performance 500K+ · 4.4★ (30) host-installed base
wp.org #9 7 too high 17 
Unbloater 5K+ · 5.0★ (17) thin reviews
wp.org #13 ↓1 4 too high 18 
Advanced IP Blocker 3K+ · 4.9★ (27)
wp.org #16 ↑2 2 too high 19 
ThumbPress – Compress Images, Manage Thumbnails, Detect Image Issues, WebP/AVIF, Lazy Loading, Hotlinking & More 20K+ · 3.7★ (117)
wp.org #23 4 too low 20 
Cloudflare 200K+ · 3.5★ (181)
wp.org #24 4 too low 21 
BotBlocker Security – Complete security platform 3K+ · 5.0★ (11) thin reviews
wp.org #19 2 too high 22 
EasyFonts – Host Google Fonts Locally, Fast & Auto-Optimize, GDPR Compliant 1K+ · 5.0★ (6) thin reviews
wp.org #21 ↑1 1 too high 23 
ezCache 10K+ · 4.6★ (5) thin reviews
wp.org #22 ↓1 1 too high 24 T TGG – WP Optimizer 700+ · 5.0★ (2) thin reviews
wp.org #17 ↓1 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.