wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “guests”

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 “guests”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 10 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

Guest Order Assigner shows at wp.org #8 but places #21 on merit, a gap of 13 places. Its 200+ installs carry it up the search order; its 4.2★ average from 5 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Temporary Login Without Password places #7 on merit, 5.0★ from 1549 reviews, but shows at wp.org #17. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin signals wp.org

Co-Authors, Multiple Authors and Guest Authors in an Author Box with PublishPress Authors 20K+ · 4.9★ (114) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #1 2

Molongui Authorship – Author Boxes, Guest Authors & Co-Authors for WordPress 10K+ · 4.7★ (158) wp.org #2 ↑1 3

WPForms – AI Form Builder for WordPress – Contact Forms, Payment Forms, Survey Form, Quiz & More 5M+ · 4.8★ (14387) wp.org #6 3 too low 4

Events Manager – Calendar, Bookings, Tickets, Appointments and more! 60K+ · 4.2★ (551) not PHP-current wp.org #4 5

Better Messages – Chat Rooms, Group Chat, Private Messages & AI Chat Bots 10K+ · 4.8★ (142) wp.org #9 ↓2 4 too low 6

GTM4WP – A Google Tag Manager (GTM) plugin for WordPress 700K+ · 4.5★ (155) wp.org #7 ↓2 1 too low 7

Temporary Login Without Password 90K+ · 5.0★ (1549) wp.org #17 ↑7 10 too low 8

Guest Author 5K+ · 4.2★ (13) thin reviews wp.org #3 ↓1 5 too high 9

WP Post Author – Author Box, Multiple Authors, Guest Authors & Custom Avatars 10K+ · 4.2★ (22) thin reviews wp.org #5 ↑4 4 too high 10

WP Travel Engine – Tour Booking Plugin – Tour Operator Software 20K+ · 4.9★ (594) not PHP-currentheavy footprint wp.org #16 ↑2 6 too low 11

Five Star Restaurant Reservations – WordPress Booking Plugin 10K+ · 4.7★ (211) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #11 12 ( (Simply) Guest Author Name 2K+ · 4.7★ (23) thin reviews wp.org #10 2 too high 13

Tutor LMS – eLearning and online course solution 100K+ · 4.4★ (590) heavy footprint wp.org #24 ↓8 11 too low 14

Simple Author Box 90K+ · 4.3★ (115) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #13 ↓1 1 too high 15

PiWeb Export Customers Users & Guest customer to CSV for WooCommerce 1K+ · 4.7★ (30) wp.org #14 ↓1 1 too high 16

kk Star Ratings – Rate Post & Collect User Feedbacks 70K+ · 3.9★ (171) wp.org #22 6 too low 17

PW WooCommerce Gift Cards 20K+ · 4.7★ (195) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #19 ↓2 2 too low 18

Frontend Post Submission Manager Lite – Guest Post and Frontend Submission Forms 1K+ · 4.5★ (22) thin reviews wp.org #15 ↓1 3 too high 19

Payment Gateway for PayPal on WooCommerce 10K+ · 4.4★ (73) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #18 ↑1 1 too high 20

Co-Authors Plus 20K+ · 3.5★ (77) wp.org #23 3 too low 21

Guest Order Assigner 200+ · 4.2★ (5) thin reviews wp.org #8 ↑3 13 too high 22

Easy Post Submission – Frontend Posting, Guest Publishing & Submit Content for WordPress 4K+ · 4.5★ (6) thin reviews wp.org #12 ↓4 10 too high 23

EU Order Withdrawal Button for WooCommerce 6K+ · 4.6★ (7) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews wp.org #20 ↓5 3 too high 24

Wedding RSVP – Wedding Guest List, Meal Choices & RSVP Tracker 100+ · 5.0★ (5) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews wp.org #21 3 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.