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

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 smtp”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 7 of the top 20. 3 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

SMTP for Contact Form 7 shows at wp.org #12 but places #24 on merit, a gap of 12 places. Its 1K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 4.0★ average from 2 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Check & Log Email – Easy Email Testing & Mail logging places #9 on merit, 4.8★ from 290 reviews, but shows at wp.org #15. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 FluentSMTP – WP Mail SMTP Plugin with Amazon SES, SendGrid, Mailgun, Postmark, Cloudflare, toSend, Gmail and Any SMTP 600K+ · 4.8★ (405) wp.org #1 2 WP Mail SMTP by WPForms – The Most Popular SMTP and Email Log Plugin 4M+ · 4.8★ (5198) wp.org #2 3 Post SMTP – Complete Email Deliverability and SMTP Solution with Email Logs, Alerts, Backup SMTP & Mobile App 300K+ · 4.7★ (525) wp.org #3 4 Easy WP SMTP – WordPress SMTP and Email Logs: Gmail SMTP, Office 365, Outlook, Custom SMTP, and more 500K+ · 4.6★ (707) wp.org #4 5 Gmail SMTP 10K+ · 4.1★ (103) wp.org #5 6 WP SMTP Mailer – SMTP7 10K+ · 5.0★ (114) wp.org #8 2 too low 7 YaySMTP – WP Mail SMTP with Email Logs, Tracking & Reports 10K+ · 4.9★ (45) wp.org #9 2 too low 8 SureMail – SMTP and Email Logs Plugin with Amazon SES, Postmark, and Other Providers 200K+ · 4.7★ (25) wp.org #7 1 too high 9 Check & Log Email – Easy Email Testing & Mail logging 100K+ · 4.8★ (290) wp.org #15 6 too low 10 SAR Friendly SMTP 2K+ · 4.6★ (46) wp.org #13 3 too low 11 Meow Mailer – Free SMTP, Everything Included 700+ · 4.9★ (17) wp.org #11 12 WP Offload SES Lite 10K+ · 4.3★ (36) wp.org #14 2 too low 13 Payment Button for PayPal 4K+ · 4.5★ (40) wp.org #18 ↑2 5 too low 14 GoSMTP – SMTP for WordPress 500K+ · 4.3★ (10) wp.org #6 8 too high 15 Bit SMTP – Easy SMTP Solution with Email Logs 2K+ · 3.9★ (15) wp.org #10 5 too high 16 Simple SMTP by Maileroo 700+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #16 ↑1 17 Pro Mail SMTP 300+ · 4.4★ (5) wp.org #19 ↑2 2 too low 18 SmartSMTP 2K+ · 4.7★ (3) wp.org #20 ↓4 2 too low 19 Smooth SMTP 100+ · 4.7★ (3) wp.org #24 ↓1 5 too low 20 SMTP Mail Control for MailPoet 300+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #22 2 too low 21 Pinny’s Simple SMTP – Lightweight SMTP Mailer 100+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #17 ↑1 4 too high 22 Custom SMTP: Email Deliverability – FREE & Easy-to-use 100+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #21 ↓2 1 too high 23 Mesh SMTP – Easy WordPress SMTP & Email Delivery 50+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #23 ↑1 24 SMTP for Contact Form 7 1K+ · 4.0★ (2) wp.org #12 12 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.