wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “editor lock”

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 “editor lock”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 10 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

FrontEdit – Live Frontend Block Editor shows at wp.org #10 but places #23 on merit, a gap of 13 places. Its 2K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 2 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Folders – Unlimited Folders to Organize Media Library Folder, Pages, Posts, File Manager places #8 on merit, 5.0★ from 1525 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 signals wp.org

Code Snippets 1M+ · 4.7★ (510) not PHP-current wp.org #1 2

Members – Membership & User Role Editor Plugin 300K+ · 4.9★ (1281) wp.org #2 3

Admin Menu Editor 300K+ · 4.6★ (312) wp.org #3 ↓1 4

BEAR – Bulk Editor for WooCommerce Professional. AI assistant on board (MCP Server) 30K+ · 4.7★ (228) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #4 5

User Profile Builder – Beautiful User Registration Forms, User Profiles & User Role Editor 40K+ · 4.7★ (738) wp.org #9 ↓1 4 too low 6

Spectra Blocks – AI Website Builder for the Block Editor 60K+ · 4.6★ (53) heavy footprint wp.org #5 ↓2 1 too high 7

Download Monitor 80K+ · 4.5★ (525) wp.org #17 10 too low 8

Folders – Unlimited Folders to Organize Media Library Folder, Pages, Posts, File Manager 90K+ · 5.0★ (1525) wp.org #24 16 too low 9

BrikPanel: WooCommerce Dashboard & Analytics, Abandoned Cart Recovery, Order Export, Inventory Management & Bulk Editor 1K+ · 5.0★ (55) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #8 ↓1 1 too high 10

Bulk Edit Posts and Products in Spreadsheet 7K+ · 4.8★ (217) wp.org #16 ↓3 6 too low 11

Security Optimizer – The All-In-One Protection Plugin 1M+ · 4.5★ (157) wp.org #11 ↓1 12

Twentig Supercharged Block Editor – Blocks, Patterns, Starter Sites, Portfolio 20K+ · 4.9★ (171) wp.org #18 ↓2 6 too low 13

File Manager 1M+ · 4.6★ (1492) wp.org #21 ↓1 8 too low 14

Better Block Editor (BBE) 6K+ · 5.0★ (11) not PHP-current thin reviews wp.org #7 ↓1 7 too high 15

No Gutenberg? – Choose Where to Use the Block Editor or the Classic Editor 9K+ · 5.0★ (16) thin reviews wp.org #12 ↓1 4 too high 17

Adminify – White Label, Admin Menu Editor, Login Customizer 6K+ · 4.3★ (109) wp.org #22 ↓1 5 too low 18

Snow Monkey Editor 30K+ · 4.0★ (5) thin reviews wp.org #6 ↓1 12 too high 19

Editor Block Outline 1K+ · 4.9★ (23) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews wp.org #13 ↓1 6 too high 20

Easy Accordion Block – Accordion, FAQ & Collapsible Content for the Block Editor 7K+ · 4.4★ (16) thin reviews wp.org #23 ↓1 3 too low 21

Frontman – AI Website Editor 80+ · 5.0★ (7) thin reviews wp.org #19 2 too high 22

Jamie's Front-End Editor for Content Teams 100+ · 4.6★ (8) thin reviews wp.org #20 ↓2 2 too high 23

FrontEdit – Live Frontend Block Editor 2K+ · 5.0★ (2) thin reviews wp.org #10 ↓1 13 too high 24

Lock Last Modified Date 80+ · 4.0★ (1) thin reviews wp.org #14 10 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.