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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “dns prefetch”

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 “dns prefetch”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 11 of the top 20. 5 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

Embed Optimizer shows at wp.org #5 but places #19 on merit, a gap of 14 places. Its 50K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 3.0★ average from 2 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Clearfy Cache – WordPress optimization plugin, Minify HTML, CSS & JS, Defer places #8 on merit, 4.7★ from 339 reviews, but shows at wp.org #22. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 LiteSpeed Cache 7M+ · 4.8★ (2778) wp.org #1 2 D Disable Emojis (GDPR friendly) 60K+ · 5.0★ (108) wp.org #2 3 OMGF | GDPR/DSGVO Compliant, Faster Google Fonts. Easy. 300K+ · 4.7★ (213) wp.org #4 1 too low 4 HTTP Headers 40K+ · 4.3★ (70) wp.org #3 1 too high 5 Unbloater 5K+ · 5.0★ (17) wp.org #8 ↑1 3 too low 6 Disable Bloat for WordPress & WooCommerce 10K+ · 4.8★ (100) wp.org #16 10 too low 7 SpeedyCache – Cache, Optimization, Performance 500K+ · 4.4★ (30) wp.org #6 1 too high 8 Clearfy Cache – WordPress optimization plugin, Minify HTML, CSS & JS, Defer 40K+ · 4.7★ (339) wp.org #22 14 too low 9 Featherweight 10K+ · 4.1★ (45) wp.org #7 2 too high 10 DietPress 2K+ · 5.0★ (38) wp.org #14 ↓1 4 too low 11 Leverage Browser Caching 9K+ · 4.1★ (42) wp.org #11 12 WP Hide & Security Enhancer 50K+ · 4.3★ (275) wp.org #17 ↑1 5 too low 13 WP Performance 200+ · 4.9★ (28) wp.org #18 ↓1 5 too low 14 EasyFonts – Host Google Fonts Locally, Fast & Auto-Optimize, GDPR Compliant 1K+ · 5.0★ (6) wp.org #13 ↑1 1 too high 15 WP Remove Query Strings From Static Resources 3K+ · 5.0★ (5) wp.org #12 3 too high 16 Swift Performance Lite 6K+ · 3.6★ (125) wp.org #23 7 too low 17 ezCache 10K+ · 4.6★ (5) wp.org #10 7 too high 18 F12 Profiler 400+ · 4.0★ (6) wp.org #20 2 too low 19 Embed Optimizer 50K+ · 3.0★ (2) wp.org #5 14 too high 20 T TGG – WP Optimizer 700+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #9 ↓1 11 too high 21 Perform – Optimize Performance 200+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #15 6 too high 22 ZenPress 60+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #24 2 too low 23 Performance & Security 50+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #19 4 too high 24 Zenchef widget integration 2K+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #21 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.