wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “generated”
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 “generated”, we and wp.org disagree on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 12 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 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
AI Generated Post shows at wp.org #9 but places #24 on merit, a gap of 15 places. Its 10+ 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
Popup Maker – Boost Sales, Conversions, Optins, Subscribers with the Ultimate WP Popup Builder places #11 on merit, 4.9★ from 4514 reviews, but shows at wp.org #24. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.
WPForms – AI Form Builder for WordPress – Contact Forms, Payment Forms, Survey Form, Quiz & More 5M+ · 4.8★ (14387)
wp.org #2 1 too low 2 
Code Snippets 1M+ · 4.7★ (510) not PHP-current
wp.org #1 1 too high 3 
Yoast SEO – Advanced SEO with real-time guidance and built-in AI 10M+ · 4.8★ (27821)
wp.org #7 ↑2 4 too low 4 
WP Mail SMTP by WPForms – SMTP for Reliable Email Delivery with Gmail, Outlook, Amazon SES, Brevo, Other SMTP & More 4M+ · 4.8★ (5209)
wp.org #6 ↓1 2 too low 5 
Easy Table of Contents 600K+ · 4.4★ (221)
wp.org #5 ↑1 6 
Customer Reviews for WooCommerce 80K+ · 4.8★ (1539)
wp.org #15 ↓1 9 too low 7 
XML Sitemap Generator for Google 1M+ · 4.8★ (2233)
wp.org #13 6 too low 8 
Disable Media Sizes 10K+ · 5.0★ (23) thin reviews
wp.org #8 ↓1 9 
WP Super Cache 1M+ · 4.3★ (1346)
wp.org #14 ↑2 5 too low 10 
Real-Time Find and Replace 70K+ · 4.5★ (82)
wp.org #12 ↓1 2 too low 11 Popup Maker – Boost Sales, Conversions, Optins, Subscribers with the Ultimate WP Popup Builder 600K+ · 4.9★ (4514)
wp.org #24 ↓6 13 too low 12 
FakerPress 10K+ · 4.9★ (205)
wp.org #20 ↑2 8 too low 13 
GenerateBlocks 200K+ · 4.9★ (122)
wp.org #19 ↑1 6 too low 14 
MightyShare – Auto-Generated Social Media Images 200+ · 5.0★ (4) thin reviews
wp.org #4 10 too high 15 
Auto Featured Image (Auto Generated) 200+ · 3.6★ (7) thin reviews
wp.org #3 12 too high 16 
Gravity Forms + Custom Post Types 10K+ · 4.4★ (46)
wp.org #16 ↓1 17 
Nested Pages 90K+ · 4.7★ (126)
wp.org #23 6 too low 18 
Disable WP Sitemaps 10K+ · 5.0★ (10) thin reviews
wp.org #10 8 too high 19 
Modern Image Formats 100K+ · 3.6★ (26)
wp.org #11 ↑1 8 too high 20 
Kaya QR Code Generator 10K+ · 4.4★ (38)
wp.org #18 ↑1 2 too high 21 
MxChat – AI Chatbot & Content Generation for WordPress 2K+ · 5.0★ (31) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #22 ↓1 1 too low 22 
Send Emails with Mandrill 6K+ · 5.0★ (11) thin reviews
wp.org #21 1 too high 23 
Table Of Contents Block 10K+ · 4.3★ (7) thin reviews
wp.org #17 6 too high 24 AI Generated Post 10+ · 5.0★ (1) thin reviews
wp.org #9 ↓1 15 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.