wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “gmail api”

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 “gmail api”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 11 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

Mailster Gmail Integration shows at wp.org #6 but places #24 on merit, a gap of 18 places. Its 1K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 1.0★ average from 1 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Email Subscribers & Newsletters by Icegram Express – Email Marketing, Post Notifications & WooCommerce Marekting Automation for WordPress places #9 on merit, 4.6★ from 1170 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.

merit plugin signals wp.org

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 #1 2

FluentSMTP – WP Mail SMTP Plugin with Amazon SES, SendGrid, Mailgun, Postmark, Cloudflare, toSend, Gmail and Any SMTP 700K+ · 4.8★ (410) wp.org #2 3

Post SMTP – Complete Email Delivery and SMTP Solution with Email Logs, Alerts, Backup SMTP & Mobile App 300K+ · 4.7★ (528) wp.org #4 1 too low 4

Gmail SMTP 10K+ · 4.1★ (103) wp.org #3 1 too high 5

Easy WP SMTP – WordPress SMTP and Email Logs: Gmail SMTP, Office 365, Outlook, Custom SMTP, and more 500K+ · 4.6★ (709) wp.org #5 6

AddToAny Share Buttons 300K+ · 4.7★ (1114) wp.org #13 ↓1 7 too low 7

CartFlows – Funnel Builder & Checkout Plugin for WooCommerce 200K+ · 4.8★ (517) wp.org #14 ↑1 7 too low 8

Floating Chat Widget: Contact Chat Icons, Telegram Chat, Line Messenger, WeChat, Email, SMS, Call Button – Chaty 300K+ · 5.0★ (1244) wp.org #22 14 too low 9

Email Subscribers & Newsletters by Icegram Express – Email Marketing, Post Notifications & WooCommerce Marekting Automation for WordPress 50K+ · 4.6★ (1170) wp.org #24 ↓1 15 too low 10

Meow Mailer – Free SMTP, Everything Included 900+ · 5.0★ (26) wp.org #12 ↑1 2 too low 11

Google Authenticator 20K+ · 4.3★ (135) wp.org #18 ↑1 7 too low 12

YaySMTP – WP Mail SMTP with Email Logs, Tracking & Reports 10K+ · 4.9★ (45) wp.org #16 ↓2 4 too low 13

SureMail – SMTP and Email Logs Plugin with Amazon SES, Postmark, and Other Providers 200K+ · 4.7★ (25) wp.org #11 2 too high 14

Google for WooCommerce 800K+ · 2.7★ (268) wp.org #8 ↓1 6 too high 15

WP Offload SES Lite 10K+ · 4.3★ (36) wp.org #15 ↑3 16

Payment Button for PayPal 4K+ · 4.5★ (40) wp.org #19 ↓2 2 too low 18

Album Gallery for Flickr 4K+ · 3.9★ (86) wp.org #23 ↓1 5 too low 19

SMTP Mail Control for MailPoet 300+ · 5.0★ (3) thin reviews wp.org #7 ↑1 12 too high 20

GoSMTP – SMTP for WordPress 500K+ · 4.3★ (10) host-installed base thin reviews wp.org #9 12 too high 22

SendForce Mail SMTP Relay – SMTP and Email API 10+ · 5.0★ (2) thin reviews wp.org #17 ↓1 5 too high 23

SMTP for Contact Form 7 1K+ · 4.0★ (2) thin reviews wp.org #10 13 too high 24

Mailster Gmail Integration 1K+ · 1.0★ (1) thin reviews wp.org #6 18 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.