wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “google plus”
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 plus”, 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
Reviews Plus shows at wp.org #16 but places #24 on merit, a gap of 8 places. Its 1K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 4.4★ average from 15 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
Buried gem
WPForms – AI Form Builder for WordPress – Contact Forms, Payment Forms, Survey Form, Quiz & More places #11 on merit, 4.8★ from 14387 reviews, but shows at wp.org #20. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.
GTM4WP – A Google Tag Manager (GTM) plugin for WordPress 700K+ · 4.5★ (155)
wp.org #1 ↑1 2 W WP Photo Album Plus 10K+ · 4.7★ (199) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #2 ↑2 3 
Table of Contents Plus – Automatic Table of Contents for Posts & Pages 200K+ · 4.5★ (187)
wp.org #3 4 
Burst Statistics – Simple WordPress Analytics (Google Analytics Alternative) 200K+ · 4.9★ (186)
wp.org #4 ↑3 5 
WP Go Maps – Google Map, OpenStreetMap, Leaflet Map 300K+ · 4.8★ (3055) not PHP-current
wp.org #6 ↓1 1 too low 6 
GA Google Analytics – Connect Google Analytics to WordPress 400K+ · 4.9★ (158)
wp.org #5 ↑1 1 too high 7 
Embed Plus for YouTube Gallery, Livestream and Lazy Loading with Facades 100K+ · 4.6★ (572)
wp.org #8 ↑2 1 too low 8 
WP Statistics – Simple, privacy-friendly Google Analytics alternative 500K+ · 4.1★ (759)
wp.org #7 1 too high 9 
Yoast SEO – Advanced SEO with real-time guidance and built-in AI 10M+ · 4.8★ (27821)
wp.org #12 ↑9 3 too low 10 
All in One SEO – AI SEO Plugin to Boost SEO Rankings & Traffic (Schema, Local SEO, Sitemap & SEO Insights) 2M+ · 4.7★ (5231) not PHP-currentheavy footprint
wp.org #9 ↓1 1 too high 11 WPForms – AI Form Builder for WordPress – Contact Forms, Payment Forms, Survey Form, Quiz & More 5M+ · 4.8★ (14387)
wp.org #20 ↓6 9 too low 12 
WP Google Review Slider 30K+ · 4.9★ (373) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #11 ↑1 1 too high 13 
WooCommerce 7M+ · 4.5★ (4833) throws errorsnot PHP-currentheavy footprint
wp.org #10 ↓1 3 too high 14 
Anti-Spam, Spam FireWall by CleanTalk 200K+ · 4.8★ (3220)
wp.org #24 10 too low 15 
Jetpack – AI Agents & MCP, Security, Backup & Analytics 3M+ · 3.7★ (2408)
wp.org #13 2 too high 16 
The Plus Addons for Elementor – Mega Menu, Header Footer, Post Grid, AI Widgets & Templates 100K+ · 4.6★ (388)
wp.org #18 2 too low 17 
Google Authenticator 20K+ · 4.3★ (135)
wp.org #14 ↓1 3 too high 18 
reCaptcha by BestWebSoft 100K+ · 3.9★ (391)
wp.org #15 3 too high 19 
The Events Calendar 600K+ · 4.2★ (2461)
wp.org #23 4 too low 20 
Post to Google My Business (Google Business Profile) 10K+ · 4.9★ (159) not PHP-current
wp.org #17 ↑2 3 too high 21 
Login for Google Apps by WPAuth 10K+ · 4.6★ (64)
wp.org #19 ↑1 2 too high 22 
Reviews and Rating – Google Reviews 20K+ · 4.9★ (184) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #21 ↓10 1 too high 23 
WP Maps – Google Maps, OpenStreetMap, Mapbox, Store Locator with Search, Filters & Listings 60K+ · 4.3★ (122) throws errorsnot PHP-currentheavy footprint
wp.org #22 1 too high 24 Reviews Plus 1K+ · 4.4★ (15) thin reviews
wp.org #16 8 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.