wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “format title”
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 “format title”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 13 of the top 20. 1 plugin is 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 the install base is organic or host-pushed, and its risk of being pulled.
Ranked above its merit
Hostinger Tools shows at wp.org #10 but places #22 on merit, a gap of 12 places. Its 3M+ installs carry it up the search order; its 3.5★ average from 40 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
Secondary Title 7K+ · 4.9★ (72)
wp.org #1 2 
Elementor Website Builder – more than just a page builder 10M+ · 4.5★ (7322)
wp.org #2 3 
All in One SEO – AI SEO Plugin to Boost SEO Rankings & Traffic (Schema, Local SEO, Sitemap & SEO Insights) 2M+ · 4.7★ (5231)
wp.org #6 3 too low 4 
Rank Math SEO – AI SEO Tools to Dominate SEO Rankings 4M+ · 4.8★ (7520)
wp.org #7 3 too low 5 
ElementsKit Elementor Addons – Advanced Widgets & Templates Addons for Elementor 1M+ · 4.9★ (2051)
wp.org #8 3 too low 6 
Product Feed Manager for WooCommerce – CTX Feed – Support 220+ Shopping, AI & Social Channels 90K+ · 4.6★ (838)
wp.org #9 3 too low 7 
Modern Image Formats 100K+ · 3.6★ (26)
wp.org #3 4 too high 8 
Modula Image Gallery – Photo Grid & Video Gallery 100K+ · 4.7★ (616)
wp.org #11 3 too low 9 
Smush – Image Optimization, Compression, Lazy Load, WebP & CDN 1M+ · 4.8★ (6053)
wp.org #12 3 too low 10 
SEO Media Manager 5K+ · 4.8★ (18) thin reviews
wp.org #4 6 too high 11 
Product Feed PRO for WooCommerce by AdTribes – Product Feeds for WooCommerce 80K+ · 4.7★ (1072)
wp.org #14 3 too low 12 
Translate WordPress with GTranslate 900K+ · 4.9★ (4962)
wp.org #15 3 too low 13 
Fluent Forms – Customizable Contact Forms, Survey, Quiz, & Conversational Form Builder 800K+ · 4.8★ (807)
wp.org #13 14 
MM Title Manager — Hide Page and Post Titles 10K+ · 4.4★ (17) thin reviews
wp.org #5 9 too high 15 
PDF Invoices & Packing Slips for WooCommerce 300K+ · 5.0★ (1865)
wp.org #23 8 too low 16 
Imagify Image Optimization: Optimize Images | Compress & Convert to WebP/AVIF 900K+ · 4.3★ (1657)
wp.org #16 17 
Postie 10K+ · 4.7★ (139)
wp.org #18 1 too low 18 
Enable Media Replace 600K+ · 4.4★ (302)
wp.org #17 1 too high 19 
SiteOrigin Widgets Bundle 400K+ · 4.9★ (134)
wp.org #21 2 too low 20 
GTM4WP – A Google Tag Manager (GTM) plugin for WordPress 700K+ · 4.5★ (155)
wp.org #19 1 too high 21 
Post Duplicator 200K+ · 4.8★ (80)
wp.org #24 3 too low 22 Hostinger Tools 3M+ · 3.5★ (40) host-installed base
wp.org #10 12 too high 23 
List Last Changes 1K+ · 4.8★ (11) thin reviews
wp.org #22 1 too high 24 
Pricing Table – Block – Show Product or Service Pricing in Table Format 1K+ · 5.0★ (2) thin reviews
wp.org #20 4 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.