Plugin Pulse Beta
← Rankings

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

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 pr”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 12 of the top 20. 4 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

I-PR AVIF Converter – Automatic Image Optimization shows at wp.org #7 but places #20 on merit, a gap of 13 places. Its 20+ 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

LiteSpeed Cache places #4 on merit, 4.8★ from 2778 reviews, but shows at wp.org #12. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 WooCommerce Stripe Payment Gateway 700K+ · 3.1★ (237) wp.org #1 2 Powered Cache – Caching and Optimization for WordPress – Easily Improve PageSpeed & Web Vitals Score 3K+ · 4.8★ (58) wp.org #3 ↑2 1 too low 3 hCaptcha for WP 70K+ · 4.6★ (88) wp.org #5 ↓2 2 too low 4 LiteSpeed Cache 7M+ · 4.8★ (2778) wp.org #12 ↓1 8 too low 5 Redux Framework 900K+ · 4.4★ (273) wp.org #9 ↓2 4 too low 6 Two Factor 100K+ · 4.7★ (209) wp.org #14 ↓1 8 too low 7 WooPayments: Integrated WooCommerce Payments 800K+ · 3.4★ (177) wp.org #4 3 too high 8 VK All in One Expansion Unit 100K+ · 4.0★ (7) wp.org #2 6 too high 9 Magic Login – Magic Link & Passwordless Authentication for WordPress – Login Without Password 3K+ · 4.8★ (26) wp.org #8 1 too high 10 Event Organiser 20K+ · 4.6★ (140) wp.org #11 ↑1 1 too low 11 Lazy Load for Videos 9K+ · 4.4★ (105) wp.org #17 ↑5 6 too low 12 Controls for Contact Form 7 (Redirects, Analytics & Tracking) 10K+ · 5.0★ (13) wp.org #13 1 too low 13 Stratum Widgets for Elementor 20K+ · 4.5★ (12) wp.org #10 3 too high 14 View Admin As 9K+ · 4.9★ (49) wp.org #24 10 too low 15 CMB2 300K+ · 5.0★ (91) wp.org #20 5 too low 16 Alma – Pay in installments or later for WooCommerce 1K+ · 3.7★ (6) wp.org #6 10 too high 17 Friends 900+ · 5.0★ (7) wp.org #22 ↑1 5 too low 18 PayPal Enterprise Payments (formerly Braintree) for WooCommerce 10K+ · 2.6★ (50) wp.org #18 19 Wbcom Designs – BuddyPress Check-ins 90+ · 3.5★ (11) wp.org #19 20 I-PR AVIF Converter – Automatic Image Optimization 20+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #7 ↑2 13 too high 21 Axeptio – Cookie Banner – GDPR Consent & Compliance with a friendly touch 8K+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #21 22 FAQ Schema Shortcode 100+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #16 ↓1 6 too high 23 Product Condition Manager for WooCommerce 10+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #23 ↑1 24 onOffice for WP-Websites 800+ · 2.0★ (4) wp.org #15 ↓1 9 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.