wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “dynamic deactivate plugins”
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 “dynamic deactivate plugins”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 11 of the top 20. 4 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
Royal MCP – Secure AI Connector for Claude, ChatGPT & any LLM via MCP shows at wp.org #9 but places #17 on merit, a gap of 8 places. Its 10K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 7 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
Buried gem
Product Feed PRO for WooCommerce by AdTribes – Product Feeds for WooCommerce places #9 on merit, 4.7★ from 1071 reviews, but shows at wp.org #13. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.
Payment Plugins for Stripe WooCommerce 100K+ · 4.8★ (303) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #1 2 
Speed Optimizer – The All-In-One Performance-Boosting Plugin 1M+ · 4.2★ (641)
wp.org #2 3 
Advanced Dynamic Pricing and Discount Rules for WooCommerce 20K+ · 4.7★ (123)
wp.org #4 1 too low 4 
Plugin Load Filter 7K+ · 4.8★ (52)
wp.org #3 1 too high 5 
Really Simple Security – Simple and Performant Security (formerly Really Simple SSL) 3M+ · 4.9★ (8869)
wp.org #7 2 too low 6 
Essential Addons for Elementor – Popular Elementor Templates & Widgets 1M+ · 4.9★ (4132) not PHP-current
wp.org #8 ↓2 2 too low 7 
Pixel Manager for WooCommerce – Conversion Tracking, Google Ads, GA4, TikTok, Dynamic Remarketing 40K+ · 4.9★ (399)
wp.org #10 ↑2 3 too low 8 
Discount Rules and Dynamic Pricing for WooCommerce 9K+ · 4.7★ (248) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #6 ↑2 2 too high 9 Product Feed PRO for WooCommerce by AdTribes – Product Feeds for WooCommerce 80K+ · 4.7★ (1071)
wp.org #13 4 too low 10 
YayPricing – WooCommerce Dynamic Pricing & Discounts 3K+ · 5.0★ (72)
wp.org #11 1 too low 11 
Dynamic Year Block 2K+ · 5.0★ (8) thin reviews
wp.org #5 6 too high 12 
Product Feed Manager for WooCommerce – CTX Feed – Support 220+ Shopping, AI & Social Channels 90K+ · 4.6★ (838) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #15 3 too low 13 
Click to Chat – HoliThemes 600K+ · 4.8★ (131)
wp.org #16 3 too low 14 
Category AJAX Filter – Posts, Custom Post Types & Product Filter 6K+ · 4.9★ (158)
wp.org #19 ↑2 5 too low 15 
Product Filter for WooCommerce by WBW 50K+ · 4.8★ (325)
wp.org #24 9 too low 16 
WP Multilang – Translation and Multilingual Plugin 10K+ · 4.3★ (100)
wp.org #21 ↓6 5 too low 17 Royal MCP – Secure AI Connector for Claude, ChatGPT & any LLM via MCP 10K+ · 5.0★ (7) thin reviews
wp.org #9 ↑1 8 too high 18 
Logo Slider – Logo Showcase, Logo Carousel, Logo Gallery and Client Logo Presentation 30K+ · 4.7★ (252) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #23 5 too low 19 
Dynamic Product Gallery for WooCommerce 1K+ · 3.1★ (37)
wp.org #12 ↓3 7 too high 20 
Whols – Wholesale Prices and B2B Store Solution for WooCommerce 3K+ · 5.0★ (14) thin reviews
wp.org #20 ↓1 21 
HT Slider For Elementor 20K+ · 3.8★ (12) thin reviews
wp.org #18 3 too high 22 
HT Easy GA4 – Google Analytics WordPress Plugin 6K+ · 4.5★ (8) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews
wp.org #14 8 too high 23 
Discount Rules for WooCommerce – Disco | Dynamic Pricing, Conditions, Bulk, Bundle, BOGO 5K+ · 4.2★ (9) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews
wp.org #17 ↓1 6 too high 24 
HT Contact Form – Drag & Drop Form Builder for WordPress 10K+ · 4.2★ (5) not PHP-current thin reviews
wp.org #22 2 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.