wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “field editor”
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 “field editor”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 10 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
WC – APG NIF/CIF/NIE Field shows at wp.org #13 but places #20 on merit, a gap of 7 places. Its 10K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 4.8★ 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 #10 on merit, 4.8★ from 27821 reviews, but shows at wp.org #17. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.
Checkout Field Editor (Checkout Manager) for WooCommerce 400K+ · 4.9★ (1056)
wp.org #1 2 
Advanced Custom Fields (ACF®) 2M+ · 4.5★ (1440) heavy footprint
wp.org #2 3 
Checkout Field Editor for WooCommerce – Checkout Manager 20K+ · 4.9★ (165)
wp.org #3 4 
Pods – Custom Content Types and Fields 100K+ · 4.8★ (418)
wp.org #6 2 too low 5 
User Role Editor 700K+ · 4.5★ (288)
wp.org #5 6 
Admin Menu Editor 300K+ · 4.6★ (312)
wp.org #7 1 too low 7 
Members – Membership & User Role Editor Plugin 300K+ · 4.9★ (1281)
wp.org #10 3 too low 8 
Kadence Blocks — Page Builder Toolkit for Gutenberg Editor 600K+ · 4.8★ (333) heavy footprint
wp.org #8 9 
Checkout Field Editor (Checkout Manager) for WooCommerce 2K+ · 4.7★ (40) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #4 5 too high 10 Yoast SEO – Advanced SEO with real-time guidance and built-in AI 10M+ · 4.8★ (27821)
wp.org #17 7 too low 11 
Table Field Add-on for ACF and SCF 50K+ · 4.9★ (60)
wp.org #9 2 too high 12 
Elementor Website Builder – more than just a page builder 10M+ · 4.5★ (7322) not PHP-currentheavy footprint
wp.org #14 2 too low 13 
User Profile Builder – Beautiful User Registration Forms, User Profiles & User Role Editor 40K+ · 4.7★ (738)
wp.org #22 9 too low 14 
BEAR – Bulk Editor for WooCommerce Professional. AI assistant on board (MCP Server) 30K+ · 4.7★ (228) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #11 3 too high 15 
Forminator Forms – Contact Form, Payment Form & Custom Form Builder 600K+ · 4.8★ (2144)
wp.org #24 9 too low 16 
Meta Field Block – Display Custom Fields for ACF, Meta Box and More 10K+ · 5.0★ (57) not PHP-current
wp.org #12 4 too high 17 
Flexible Checkout Fields for WooCommerce – WooCommerce Checkout Manager 80K+ · 4.7★ (296)
wp.org #21 4 too low 18 
Secure Custom Fields 100K+ · 4.8★ (69) heavy footprint
wp.org #23 5 too low 19 
Blocks for ACF Fields — Display Custom Fields in the Block Editor 2K+ · 4.9★ (13) thin reviews
wp.org #15 4 too high 20 WC – APG NIF/CIF/NIE Field 10K+ · 4.8★ (23) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews
wp.org #13 7 too high 21 
Custom Field Template 30K+ · 4.0★ (24) thin reviews
wp.org #16 5 too high 22 
BrikPanel: WooCommerce Dashboard & Analytics, Abandoned Cart Recovery, Order Export, Inventory Management & Bulk Editor 1K+ · 5.0★ (55) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #20 2 too high 23 
Better Block Editor (BBE) 6K+ · 5.0★ (11) not PHP-current thin reviews
wp.org #18 5 too high 24 
Classic Editor and Classic Widgets 20K+ · 5.0★ (5) thin reviews
wp.org #19 5 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.