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← Rankings

wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “eye one”

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 “eye one”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 12 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

Digi Eye Redirects shows at wp.org #5 but places #22 on merit, a gap of 17 places. Its 100+ 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

Premium Addons for Elementor – AI-Ready Elementor Addons, Widgets & Templates places #4 on merit, 4.9★ from 1680 reviews, but shows at wp.org #9. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 All in One SEO – AI SEO Plugin to Boost SEO Rankings & Traffic (Schema, Local SEO, Sitemap & SEO Insights) 2M+ · 4.7★ (5231) wp.org #1 2 Security Optimizer – The All-In-One Protection Plugin 1M+ · 4.5★ (157) wp.org #2 3 Schema – All In One Schema Rich Snippets 30K+ · 4.0★ (162) wp.org #4 1 too low 4 Premium Addons for Elementor – AI-Ready Elementor Addons, Widgets & Templates 600K+ · 4.9★ (1680) wp.org #9 ↑1 5 too low 5 Jetpack – AI Agents & MCP, Security, Backup & Analytics 3M+ · 3.7★ (2408) wp.org #7 ↑2 2 too low 6 Elementor Website Builder – more than just a page builder 10M+ · 4.5★ (7323) wp.org #8 2 too low 7 Hustle – Email Marketing, Lead Generation, Optins, Popups 80K+ · 4.4★ (859) wp.org #11 ↑2 4 too low 8 ShopEngine – All-in-One Elementor WooCommerce Builder with eCommerce Templates & Woo Widgets 100K+ · 4.6★ (212) wp.org #10 ↑1 2 too low 9 ShopLentor – All-in-One WooCommerce Growth & Store Enhancement Plugin 80K+ · 4.5★ (278) wp.org #12 3 too low 10 Essential Addons for Elementor – Popular Elementor Templates & Widgets 1M+ · 4.9★ (4132) wp.org #14 ↑1 4 too low 11 CartSuite – Cart All In One For WooCommerce 5K+ · 4.5★ (51) wp.org #6 5 too high 12 Gutenberg Essential Blocks – Page Builder for Gutenberg Blocks & Patterns 100K+ · 4.9★ (216) wp.org #13 ↑1 1 too low 13 Post SMTP – Complete Email Delivery and SMTP Solution with Email Logs, Alerts, Backup SMTP & Mobile App 300K+ · 4.7★ (528) wp.org #17 ↑1 4 too low 14 Slider, Gallery, and Carousel by MetaSlider – Image Slider, Video Slider 500K+ · 4.6★ (743) wp.org #18 ↑1 4 too low 15 WP RSS Aggregator – RSS Import, Feed to Post, Autoblogging, AI Content 40K+ · 4.5★ (565) wp.org #20 ↑2 5 too low 16 ManageWP Worker 1M+ · 4.6★ (679) wp.org #16 ↑1 17 Database Cleaner: Cleanup, Optimization & Repair 10K+ · 5.0★ (150) wp.org #22 5 too low 18 WPeMatico RSS Feed Fetcher 10K+ · 4.8★ (514) wp.org #21 ↑3 3 too low 19 VK All in One Expansion Unit 100K+ · 4.0★ (7) wp.org #3 16 too high 20 XML Sitemap & Google News 100K+ · 4.4★ (85) wp.org #23 3 too low 21 Qi Blocks 60K+ · 5.0★ (5) wp.org #24 3 too low 22 Digi Eye Redirects 100+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #5 17 too high 23 Hostinger Reach – AI-Powered Email Marketing for WordPress 1M+ · 5.0★ (8) wp.org #19 ↑2 4 too high 24 Alert Box Block – Grab Attention with Eye-Catching Notices 400+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #15 ↑1 9 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.