Plugin Pulse Beta
← Rankings

wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “github actions”

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 “github actions”, 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

Organizers Embed – Action Network for WordPress shows at wp.org #3 but places #21 on merit, a gap of 18 places. Its 400+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 2 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Members – Membership & User Role Editor Plugin places #10 on merit, 4.9★ from 1281 reviews, but shows at wp.org #18. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Spectra Legacy – Gutenberg Blocks 1M+ · 4.7★ (1872) wp.org #1 2 LiteSpeed Cache 7M+ · 4.8★ (2778) wp.org #2 ↓1 3 Really Simple Security – Simple and Performant Security (formerly Really Simple SSL) 3M+ · 4.9★ (8869) wp.org #4 ↑4 1 too low 4 Ultimate Member – User Profile, Registration, Login, Member Directory, Content Restriction & Membership Plugin 200K+ · 4.4★ (1445) wp.org #7 ↓1 3 too low 5 Schedule Post Changes With PublishPress Future: Unpublish, Delete, Change Status, Trash, Change Categories 100K+ · 4.5★ (172) wp.org #6 ↓3 1 too low 6 Essential Addons for Elementor – Popular Elementor Templates & Widgets 1M+ · 4.9★ (4132) wp.org #8 ↑2 2 too low 7 Yoast Duplicate Post 3M+ · 4.7★ (538) wp.org #5 ↑1 2 too high 8 MC4WP: Mailchimp for WordPress 1M+ · 4.8★ (1497) wp.org #10 ↑1 2 too low 9 MailPoet – Newsletters, Email Marketing, and Automation 500K+ · 4.4★ (1435) wp.org #11 ↓3 2 too low 10 Members – Membership & User Role Editor Plugin 300K+ · 4.9★ (1281) wp.org #18 8 too low 11 SVG Support 1M+ · 4.8★ (356) wp.org #12 ↑2 1 too low 12 Simple Custom Post Order 300K+ · 4.8★ (588) wp.org #17 ↑1 5 too low 13 Elementor Website Builder – more than just a page builder 10M+ · 4.5★ (7323) wp.org #14 ↑1 1 too low 14 Activity Log – Monitor User and Agent Changes 200K+ · 4.3★ (74) wp.org #13 ↑10 1 too high 15 Widget Importer & Exporter 200K+ · 4.7★ (117) wp.org #19 ↓2 4 too low 16 Simple CAPTCHA with Cloudflare Turnstile 200K+ · 4.7★ (262) wp.org #20 ↓2 4 too low 17 Featured Image with URL 2K+ · 4.9★ (9) wp.org #9 8 too high 18 Custom Permalinks 100K+ · 4.1★ (116) wp.org #21 ↑1 3 too low 19 WP Plugin Info Card – Showcase Beautiful Plugin, Theme, and GitHub Cards Anywhere 400+ · 5.0★ (23) wp.org #16 3 too high 20 Code Snippets 1M+ · 4.7★ (510) wp.org #24 ↓13 4 too low 21 Organizers Embed – Action Network for WordPress 400+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #3 18 too high 22 M Multi Device Switcher 10K+ · 4.3★ (11) wp.org #15 ↓1 7 too high 23 C Custom Post Type Widgets 10K+ · 4.8★ (14) wp.org #23 ↑1 24 InstaWP Connect – 1-click WP Staging & Migration 40K+ · 4.5★ (12) wp.org #22 ↓2 2 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.