wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “facebook live”
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 live”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 9 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
Chatra Live Chat + ChatBot + Cart Saver shows at wp.org #11 but places #20 on merit, a gap of 9 places. Its 2K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 12 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 #12 on merit, 4.8★ from 27820 reviews, but shows at wp.org #21. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.
Chatway Live Chat – AI Chatbot, Customer Support, FAQ & Helpdesk Customer Service & Chat Buttons 30K+ · 5.0★ (775)
wp.org #1 2 
Easy Social Feed – All In One Social Feed Plugin for WordPress 30K+ · 4.6★ (502)
wp.org #2 3 
Tidio – Live Chat & AI Chatbots 70K+ · 4.8★ (395)
wp.org #3 4 
Smash Balloon Social Post Feed – Simple Social Feeds for WordPress 100K+ · 4.7★ (1511)
wp.org #4 5 
Elementor Website Builder – more than just a page builder 10M+ · 4.5★ (7322)
wp.org #5 6 
3CX Free Live Chat, Calls & Messaging 100K+ · 4.6★ (820)
wp.org #6 7 
Rank Math SEO – AI SEO Tools to Dominate SEO Rankings 4M+ · 4.8★ (7520)
wp.org #7 8 
Buttonizer – Social Media Share Buttons, Social Icons, & Social Feeds 40K+ · 4.8★ (396)
wp.org #9 1 too low 9 
Essential Addons for Elementor – Popular Elementor Templates & Widgets 1M+ · 4.9★ (4132)
wp.org #12 3 too low 10 
WP Review Slider 6K+ · 4.8★ (181)
wp.org #10 11 
Forminator Forms – Contact Form, Payment Form & Custom Form Builder 600K+ · 4.8★ (2144)
wp.org #15 4 too low 12 Yoast SEO – Advanced SEO with real-time guidance and built-in AI 10M+ · 4.8★ (27820)
wp.org #21 9 too low 13 
Floating Chat Widget: Contact Chat Icons, Telegram Chat, Line Messenger, WeChat, Email, SMS, Call Button – Chaty 300K+ · 5.0★ (1244)
wp.org #20 7 too low 14 
Premium Addons for Elementor – AI-Ready Elementor Addons, Widgets & Templates 600K+ · 4.9★ (1680)
wp.org #19 5 too low 15 
LiveChat – Live Chat Plugin for WP Websites 10K+ · 4.6★ (98)
wp.org #13 2 too high 16 
Pixel Cat – Conversion Pixel Manager 40K+ · 4.0★ (41)
wp.org #8 8 too high 17 
TranslatePress – Translate Multilingual sites with AI Translation 400K+ · 4.7★ (1667)
wp.org #24 7 too low 18 
Import Social Events 3K+ · 4.8★ (116)
wp.org #17 1 too high 19 
Complianz GDPR/CCPA Cookie Consent Banner 1M+ · 4.7★ (1667)
wp.org #23 4 too low 20 Chatra Live Chat + ChatBot + Cart Saver 2K+ · 5.0★ (12) thin reviews
wp.org #11 9 too high 21 
Social LikeBox & Feed 10K+ · 3.3★ (47)
wp.org #18 3 too high 22 
XT Event Widget for Social Events 800+ · 4.5★ (15) thin reviews
wp.org #22 23 
Live Rates for ShipStation 400+ · 5.0★ (6) thin reviews
wp.org #14 9 too high 24 
HelpCrunch – Live Chat, Chatbot & Knowledge Base for Customer Service 2K+ · 5.0★ (6) thin reviews
wp.org #16 8 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.