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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “disk space”

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 “disk space”, we and wp.org disagree on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 13 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

Disk Usage Details shows at wp.org #6 but places #23 on merit, a gap of 17 places. Its 70+ 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

ShortPixel Image Optimizer – Optimize Images, Convert WebP & AVIF places #10 on merit, 4.5★ from 830 reviews, but shows at wp.org #24. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 WP-Optimize – Cache, Compress images, Minify & Clean database to boost page speed & performance 1M+ · 4.8★ (2617) wp.org #2 ↑1 1 too low 2 Disk Usage Sunburst 9K+ · 4.8★ (36) wp.org #1 1 too high 3 Akismet Anti-spam: Spam Protection 5M+ · 4.7★ (1187) wp.org #4 ↓2 1 too low 4 W3 Total Cache 900K+ · 4.4★ (5420) wp.org #7 ↑2 3 too low 5 Imsanity 200K+ · 4.9★ (291) wp.org #8 ↓2 3 too low 6 Disk Usage Insights 1K+ · 5.0★ (12) wp.org #3 ↑1 3 too high 7 Big File Uploads – Increase Maximum File Upload Size 100K+ · 4.9★ (402) wp.org #10 ↓3 3 too low 8 Debug Log Manager – Conveniently Monitor and Inspect Errors 10K+ · 5.0★ (25) wp.org #11 ↓1 3 too low 9 Hyper Cache 7K+ · 4.5★ (82) wp.org #14 ↓2 5 too low 10 ShortPixel Image Optimizer – Optimize Images, Convert WebP & AVIF 300K+ · 4.5★ (830) wp.org #24 ↓2 14 too low 11 Cimo – Free Instant Image Optimizer & WebP Converter 10K+ · 4.9★ (20) wp.org #16 ↓8 5 too low 12 Backup and Staging by WP Time Capsule 10K+ · 4.0★ (128) wp.org #22 10 too low 13 Media Deduper 9K+ · 3.8★ (44) wp.org #13 ↓2 14 Offload Media – Cloud Storage 1K+ · 4.4★ (18) wp.org #12 2 too high 15 WP-Memory-Usage 10K+ · 4.5★ (21) wp.org #18 ↓2 3 too low 16 ThumbPress – Compress Images, Manage Thumbnails, Detect Image Issues, WebP/AVIF, Lazy Loading, Hotlinking & More 20K+ · 3.7★ (117) wp.org #23 ↓4 7 too low 17 Media Library Tools – AI-Powered Rename, Clean & CSV Import/Export 2K+ · 4.7★ (14) wp.org #19 ↑1 2 too low 18 Royal WordPress Backup, Restore & Migration Plugin – Backup WordPress Sites Safely 30K+ · 5.0★ (7) wp.org #15 ↑6 3 too high 19 Media Library File Size 6K+ · 4.6★ (5) wp.org #9 10 too high 20 Smart Auto Upload Images – Import External Images 5K+ · 4.3★ (6) wp.org #17 3 too high 21 Dashboard: Available Disk Space 100+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #5 16 too high 22 My Simple Space 7K+ · 4.4★ (10) wp.org #20 ↓7 2 too high 23 Disk Usage Details 70+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #6 ↑12 17 too high 24 MyServerInfo – Memory Usage, PHP Version, Memory Limit, Execution Time, CPU Usage, Disk Usage 800+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #21 ↓6 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.