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← Rankings

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

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 “gds”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 12 of the top 20. 8 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

powerSearch for bbPress shows at wp.org #14 but places #22 on merit, a gap of 8 places. Its 100+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 1 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

GeoDirectory – WP Business Directory Plugin and Classified Listings Directory places #6 on merit, 4.8★ from 716 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 wp.org
1 GD Rating System 1K+ · 4.3★ (24) wp.org #1 ↑1 2 EWWW Image Optimizer 1M+ · 4.8★ (1842) wp.org #4 ↑1 2 too low 3 Image Watermark 40K+ · 4.2★ (298) wp.org #7 ↑1 4 too low 4 GD bbPress Tools 1K+ · 3.8★ (24) wp.org #2 ↑1 2 too high 5 WebP Express 300K+ · 4.4★ (162) wp.org #10 ↑1 5 too low 6 GeoDirectory – WP Business Directory Plugin and Classified Listings Directory 10K+ · 4.8★ (716) wp.org #16 ↑1 10 too low 7 ImageMagick Engine 60K+ · 4.4★ (16) wp.org #6 ↑1 1 too high 8 GD Security Headers 1K+ · 4.0★ (8) wp.org #3 ↑1 5 too high 9 forumAttachments for bbPress 6K+ · 4.3★ (26) wp.org #8 ↓7 1 too high 10 MegaOptim Image Optimizer – Convert to WebP & AVIF, Compress Images Locally 100+ · 5.0★ (34) wp.org #20 10 too low 11 SiteGuard WP Plugin 600K+ · 4.3★ (15) wp.org #5 ↑1 6 too high 12 WPSSO Tune WP Image Editors 800+ · 5.0★ (6) wp.org #9 3 too high 13 GD Mail Queue 700+ · 5.0★ (11) wp.org #15 2 too low 14 SpeedyCache – Cache, Optimization, Performance 500K+ · 4.4★ (30) wp.org #22 ↑1 8 too low 15 Ultimate Watermark – Image Watermark, Image Protection & Bulk Watermarking 1K+ · 3.3★ (11) wp.org #12 3 too high 16 Pixellize Image Optimizer 200+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #13 3 too high 17 PixelCraft with WebP 500+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #18 1 too low 18 CloudSecure WP Security 100K+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #11 ↓1 7 too high 19 AVIF Uploader – Upload, Display and Fix AVIF Images 4K+ · 3.4★ (5) wp.org #19 20 topicPolls Pro for bbPress 200+ · 3.8★ (5) wp.org #17 ↓1 3 too high 21 Events Calendar for GeoDirectory 2K+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #23 ↓1 2 too low 22 powerSearch for bbPress 100+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #14 8 too high 23 CodingBunny Image Optimizer 600+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #21 2 too high 24 Rupanta Media Converter 60+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #24

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.