wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “faces”

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 “faces”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 9 of the top 20. 2 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

Ziina shows at wp.org #9 but places #21 on merit, a gap of 12 places. Its 2K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 3.8★ average from 4 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

SlimStat Analytics – Real-Time Stats, Heatmaps & Ecommerce places #11 on merit, 4.8★ from 816 reviews, but shows at wp.org #23. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin signals wp.org

Use Any Font | Custom Font Uploader 200K+ · 4.7★ (1148) wp.org #1 2

MailPoet – Newsletters, Email Marketing, and Automation 500K+ · 4.4★ (1435) heavy footprint wp.org #2 3

Tutor LMS – eLearning and online course solution 100K+ · 4.4★ (590) heavy footprint wp.org #3 4

Image Alt Text 10K+ · 5.0★ (56) wp.org #5 1 too low 5 M Mesmerize Companion 50K+ · 4.4★ (51) wp.org #4 1 too high 6

OMGF | GDPR/DSGVO Compliant, Faster Google Fonts. Easy. 300K+ · 4.7★ (213) wp.org #7 1 too low 7

Logo Carousel – Responsive Logo Slider, Logo Showcase, and Clients Logo Gallery 20K+ · 4.7★ (162) wp.org #13 ↑1 6 too low 8

miniOrange 2FA – Two Factor Authentication for WordPress (OTP, SMS, Email, Google Authenticator) 10K+ · 4.5★ (385) wp.org #18 10 too low 9

Secure Passkeys 2K+ · 4.8★ (19) thin reviews wp.org #10 11

SlimStat Analytics – Real-Time Stats, Heatmaps & Ecommerce 70K+ · 4.8★ (816) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #23 12 too low 12

SEO Optimized Images 10K+ · 4.0★ (27) wp.org #12 13

Better image sizes 2K+ · 5.0★ (5) thin reviews wp.org #6 7 too high 14

EasyFonts – Host Google Fonts Locally, Fast & Auto-Optimize, GDPR Compliant 1K+ · 5.0★ (6) thin reviews wp.org #8 ↑1 6 too high 15

Social Like Box and Page by WpDevArt 5K+ · 4.2★ (88) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #15 16

Weblizar Pin It Button On Image Hover And Post 10K+ · 4.0★ (64) wp.org #21 5 too low 17 M Materialis Companion 6K+ · 4.7★ (10) thin reviews wp.org #11 6 too high 18

Admin Custom Font 900+ · 4.5★ (13) thin reviews wp.org #14 ↓1 4 too high 19

Hydra Booking — Appointment Scheduling & Booking Calendar 2K+ · 4.4★ (9) thin reviews wp.org #19 ↑1 20

WCFM Membership – WooCommerce Memberships for Multivendor Marketplace 10K+ · 4.0★ (25) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #22 2 too low 21

Ziina 2K+ · 3.8★ (4) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews wp.org #9 ↓1 12 too high 22

Parallax Section Block – Add Parallax Scrolling Effects to Sections 3K+ · 4.3★ (6) not PHP-current thin reviews wp.org #20 ↓1 2 too high 23

Sticky Social Link 1K+ · 5.0★ (4) thin reviews wp.org #24 1 too low 24

Khattat – Arabic Fonts 500+ · 5.0★ (2) thin reviews wp.org #17 7 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.