Plugin Pulse Beta
← Rankings

wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “google ads”

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 “google ads”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 7 of the top 20. 6 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

In-feed ads for Google AdSense shows at wp.org #11 but places #23 on merit, a gap of 12 places. Its 6K+ 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

WP Statistics – Simple, privacy-friendly Google Analytics alternative places #12 on merit, 4.1★ from 759 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 Site Kit by Google – Analytics, Search Console, AdSense, Speed 5M+ · 4.2★ (1012) wp.org #1 2 Advanced Ads – Ad Manager & AdSense 90K+ · 4.9★ (1463) wp.org #3 ↑3 1 too low 3 Ad Inserter – Ad Manager & AdSense Ads 300K+ · 4.9★ (2432) wp.org #6 ↑1 3 too low 4 Pixel Manager for WooCommerce – Conversion Tracking, Google Ads, GA4, TikTok, Dynamic Remarketing 40K+ · 4.9★ (399) wp.org #5 ↑3 1 too low 5 GTM4WP – A Google Tag Manager (GTM) plugin for WordPress 700K+ · 4.5★ (155) wp.org #4 ↓1 1 too high 6 Google for WooCommerce 800K+ · 2.7★ (268) wp.org #2 4 too high 7 Quads Ads Manager for Google AdSense 20K+ · 4.9★ (1087) wp.org #9 2 too low 8 Burst Statistics – Simple WordPress Analytics (Google Analytics Alternative) 200K+ · 4.9★ (186) wp.org #10 ↑5 2 too low 9 WooCommerce 7M+ · 4.5★ (4833) wp.org #7 ↓2 2 too high 10 MonsterInsights – Google Analytics Dashboard for WordPress (Website Stats Made Easy) 2M+ · 4.5★ (3156) wp.org #8 ↓4 2 too high 11 GA Google Analytics – Connect Google Analytics to WordPress 400K+ · 4.9★ (158) wp.org #14 ↓1 3 too low 12 WP Statistics – Simple, privacy-friendly Google Analytics alternative 500K+ · 4.1★ (759) wp.org #16 ↑8 4 too low 13 Jetpack – AI Agents & MCP, Security, Backup & Analytics 3M+ · 3.7★ (2408) wp.org #15 ↓1 2 too low 14 PixelYourSite – Your smart PIXEL (TAG) & API Manager 400K+ · 4.3★ (281) wp.org #18 ↓2 4 too low 15 Conversios – GA4, Google Ads & Meta Conversion Tracking with Product Feed for WooCommerce 10K+ · 4.3★ (206) wp.org #13 ↓3 2 too high 16 Classified Listing – AI-Powered Classified ads & Business Directory 9K+ · 4.8★ (138) wp.org #22 6 too low 17 Product Feed for Google Shopping, Microsoft Advertising and 40+ Channels for WooCommerce Merchant 2K+ · 4.8★ (87) wp.org #21 4 too low 18 Pixel Tag Manager for WooCommerce – Google Analytics 4, Google Ads, and More Pixels 2K+ · 5.0★ (19) wp.org #19 1 too low 19 Easy Google Adsense and Banner Ads Manager – AdsforWP 1K+ · 4.6★ (43) wp.org #17 2 too high 20 Easy Google AdSense 5K+ · 4.3★ (7) wp.org #12 8 too high 21 HT Easy GA4 – Google Analytics WordPress Plugin 6K+ · 4.5★ (8) wp.org #23 ↓1 2 too low 22 AdFlow – Ad Inserter & Ad Manager: AdSense, Banner Ads & ads.txt 3K+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #20 2 too high 23 In-feed ads for Google AdSense 6K+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #11 12 too high 24 Advanced Ads for WPBakery Page Builder 1K+ · 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.