wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “extra content”
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 “extra content”, we and wp.org disagree on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 10 of the top 20.
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
Futurio Extra shows at wp.org #2 but places #22 on merit, a gap of 20 places. Its 10K+ 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
Shortcodes Ultimate – Content Elements places #8 on merit, 4.9★ from 5925 reviews, but shows at wp.org #16. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.
Pods – Custom Content Types and Fields 100K+ · 4.8★ (418)
wp.org #3 ↓1 2 too low 2 
Yoast SEO – Advanced SEO with real-time guidance and built-in AI 10M+ · 4.8★ (27820)
wp.org #4 ↑4 2 too low 3 
Ocean Extra 400K+ · 3.3★ (67) low rating, top placement
wp.org #1 2 too high 4 
Content Views – Post Grid & Filter (Shortcode, Blocks, Elementor Widgets) 100K+ · 4.8★ (333)
wp.org #6 ↓2 2 too low 5 
Content Control – The Ultimate Content Restriction Solution! Restrict Content, Create Conditional Blocks & More 40K+ · 4.9★ (575)
wp.org #9 ↓2 4 too low 6 
WP Content Copy Protection & No Right Click 100K+ · 4.8★ (1139)
wp.org #10 ↓1 4 too low 7 
WP EXtra – One Click Optimize 6K+ · 4.9★ (41)
wp.org #5 ↑1 2 too high 8 Shortcodes Ultimate – Content Elements 400K+ · 4.9★ (5925)
wp.org #16 ↑5 8 too low 9 
Paid Membership Subscriptions – Effortless Memberships, Recurring Payments & Content Restriction 10K+ · 4.7★ (270)
wp.org #14 ↑4 5 too low 10 
Passster – Password Protect Pages and Content 10K+ · 4.2★ (60)
wp.org #7 ↓2 3 too high 11 
Elementor Website Builder – more than just a page builder 10M+ · 4.5★ (7322)
wp.org #17 ↓1 6 too low 12 
TranslatePress – Translate Multilingual sites with AI Translation 400K+ · 4.7★ (1667)
wp.org #19 ↓4 7 too low 13 
PI Conditional cart fee / Extra charge rule for WooCommerce 2K+ · 4.9★ (38)
wp.org #11 ↑2 2 too high 14 
Secure Copy Content Protection and Content Locking 20K+ · 4.3★ (62)
wp.org #12 ↓1 2 too high 15 
Profile Extra Fields by BestWebSoft 1K+ · 4.6★ (15) thin reviews
wp.org #8 ↑2 7 too high 16 
Extra Product Sorting Options for WooCommerce 10K+ · 4.6★ (31)
wp.org #15 ↓1 1 too high 17 
Cookies and Content Security Policy 10K+ · 4.9★ (67)
wp.org #24 7 too low 18 
MxChat – AI Chatbot & Content Generation for WordPress 2K+ · 5.0★ (31)
wp.org #18 ↑4 19 
Timed Content 5K+ · 4.6★ (41)
wp.org #20 ↓3 1 too low 20 
Extra Fees for WooCommerce 7K+ · 4.3★ (42)
wp.org #21 ↓1 1 too low 21 
Content Egg – Affiliate Product Importer & Price Comparison 10K+ · 3.9★ (56)
wp.org #23 2 too low 22 Futurio Extra 10K+ · 5.0★ (1) thin reviews
wp.org #2 ↑1 20 too high 23 
Popularis Extra 6K+ · 5.0★ (1) thin reviews
wp.org #13 ↓1 10 too high 24 
Envo Extra 20K+ · 0.0★ (0) thin reviews
wp.org #22 ↑2 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.