wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “facebook”
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 “facebook”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 8 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
Pixel Cat – Conversion Pixel Manager shows at wp.org #12 but places #22 on merit, a gap of 10 places. Its 40K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 4.0★ average from 41 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 #8 on merit, 4.7★ from 1071 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.
Elementor Website Builder – more than just a page builder 10M+ · 4.5★ (7323) not PHP-currentheavy footprint
wp.org #1 ↑1 2 
Rank Math SEO – AI SEO Tools to Dominate SEO Rankings 4M+ · 4.8★ (7520)
wp.org #3 1 too low 3 
Smash Balloon Social Post Feed – Simple Social Feeds for WordPress 100K+ · 4.7★ (1511)
wp.org #5 ↓1 2 too low 4 
Easy Social Feed – All In One Social Feed Plugin for WordPress 30K+ · 4.6★ (502)
wp.org #6 ↑6 2 too low 5 
Nextend Social Login and Register 200K+ · 4.9★ (446)
wp.org #7 2 too low 6 
Widgets for Google Reviews 1M+ · 4.9★ (2667)
wp.org #8 ↑1 2 too low 7 
Meta for WooCommerce 400K+ · 2.1★ (481) throws errorsnot PHP-current low rating, top placement
wp.org #2 ↓1 5 too high 8 Product Feed PRO for WooCommerce by AdTribes – Product Feeds for WooCommerce 80K+ · 4.7★ (1071)
wp.org #16 ↑2 8 too low 9 
Jetpack – AI Agents & MCP, Security, Backup & Analytics 3M+ · 3.7★ (2408)
wp.org #10 ↑1 1 too low 10 
Social Preview and Open Graph Tags 50K+ · 4.6★ (122)
wp.org #11 ↓1 1 too low 11 
Forminator Forms – Contact Form, Payment Form & Custom Form Builder 600K+ · 4.8★ (2143)
wp.org #17 ↓1 6 too low 12 
Meta pixel for WordPress 400K+ · 2.7★ (164) low rating, top placement
wp.org #4 ↑1 8 too high 13 
WooCommerce 7M+ · 4.5★ (4833) throws errorsnot PHP-currentheavy footprint
wp.org #9 ↓3 4 too high 14 
Essential Addons for Elementor – Popular Elementor Templates & Widgets 1M+ · 4.9★ (4132) not PHP-current
wp.org #14 15 
Floating Chat Widget: Contact Chat Icons, Telegram Chat, Line Messenger, WeChat, Email, SMS, Call Button – Chaty 300K+ · 5.0★ (1244)
wp.org #21 6 too low 16 
WP2Social Auto Publish 9K+ · 4.8★ (640)
wp.org #18 ↓1 2 too low 17 
Premium Addons for Elementor – AI-Ready Elementor Addons, Widgets & Templates 600K+ · 4.9★ (1680)
wp.org #22 ↓2 5 too low 18 
Complianz GDPR/CCPA Cookie Consent Banner 1M+ · 4.7★ (1668)
wp.org #19 1 too low 19 
Buttonizer – Social Media Share Buttons, Social Icons, & Social Feeds 40K+ · 4.8★ (396) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #15 4 too high 20 
WP Review Slider 6K+ · 4.8★ (181) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #13 ↑1 7 too high 21 
Spectra Legacy – Gutenberg Blocks 1M+ · 4.7★ (1872) heavy footprint
wp.org #20 ↑5 1 too high 22 Pixel Cat – Conversion Pixel Manager 40K+ · 4.0★ (41)
wp.org #12 ↑1 10 too high 23 
Import Social Events 3K+ · 4.8★ (116)
wp.org #23 24 
Product Feed Manager for WooCommerce – CTX Feed – Support 220+ Shopping, AI & Social Channels 90K+ · 4.6★ (838) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #24 ↓1 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.