wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “facebook analytics”

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 analytics”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 12 of the top 20. 6 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

AWCA – The Great Analytics Insights for Your eStore shows at wp.org #13 but places #22 on merit, a gap of 9 places. Its 2K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 4.7★ average from 23 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Yoast SEO – Advanced SEO with real-time guidance and built-in AI places #8 on merit, 4.8★ from 27821 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.

merit plugin signals wp.org

Jetpack – AI Agents & MCP, Security, Backup & Analytics 3M+ · 3.7★ (2408) wp.org #1 2

Independent Analytics – WordPress Analytics Plugin 100K+ · 4.8★ (167) wp.org #2 3

Rank Math SEO – AI SEO Tools to Dominate SEO Rankings 4M+ · 4.8★ (7519) wp.org #4 1 too low 4

Burst Statistics – Simple WordPress Analytics (Google Analytics Alternative) 200K+ · 4.9★ (186) wp.org #3 1 too high 5

Smash Balloon Social Post Feed – Simple Social Feeds for WordPress 100K+ · 4.7★ (1511) wp.org #5 6

Complianz GDPR/CCPA Cookie Consent Banner 1M+ · 4.7★ (1667) wp.org #6 7

Product Feed PRO for WooCommerce by AdTribes – Product Feeds for WooCommerce 80K+ · 4.7★ (1071) wp.org #12 5 too low 8

Yoast SEO – Advanced SEO with real-time guidance and built-in AI 10M+ · 4.8★ (27821) wp.org #16 8 too low 9

Floating Chat Widget: Contact Chat Icons, Telegram Chat, Line Messenger, WeChat, Email, SMS, Call Button – Chaty 300K+ · 5.0★ (1244) wp.org #17 8 too low 10

Buttonizer – Social Media Share Buttons, Social Icons, & Social Feeds 40K+ · 4.8★ (396) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #10 11

Pixel Cat – Conversion Pixel Manager 40K+ · 4.0★ (41) wp.org #7 4 too high 12

BrikPanel: WooCommerce Dashboard & Analytics, Abandoned Cart Recovery, Order Export, Inventory Management & Bulk Editor 1K+ · 5.0★ (55) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #8 4 too high 13

WPCode – Insert Headers and Footers + Custom Code Snippets – WordPress Code Manager 3M+ · 4.9★ (1916) wp.org #20 7 too low 14

Under Construction 600K+ · 4.8★ (1285) wp.org #21 7 too low 15

WP Review Slider 6K+ · 4.8★ (181) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #11 4 too high 16

Flying Analytics: Self-Host Google Analytics v4 with Speed Optimization 4K+ · 4.9★ (14) thin reviews wp.org #9 7 too high 17

All in One SEO – AI SEO Plugin to Boost SEO Rankings & Traffic (Schema, Local SEO, Sitemap & SEO Insights) 2M+ · 4.7★ (5231) not PHP-currentheavy footprint wp.org #24 7 too low 18

ShareThis Dashboard for Google Analytics 80K+ · 3.6★ (138) not PHP-current wp.org #14 4 too high 19

Header Footer Code Manager 600K+ · 4.9★ (309) not PHP-current wp.org #23 4 too low 20

Metricool – Social media and site statistics 90K+ · 4.4★ (23) thin reviews wp.org #19 1 too high 21

Controls for Contact Form 7 (Redirects, Analytics & Tracking) 10K+ · 5.0★ (13) thin reviews wp.org #18 3 too high 22

AWCA – The Great Analytics Insights for Your eStore 2K+ · 4.7★ (23) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews wp.org #13 9 too high 23

Tracking and Consent Manager – WP Full Picture 3K+ · 5.0★ (21) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews wp.org #22 1 too high 24

Enhanced Ecommerce Google Analytics for WooCommerce 1K+ · 5.0★ (6) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews wp.org #15 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.