Plugin Pulse Beta
← Rankings

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

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

AEO Engine shows at wp.org #10 but places #17 on merit, a gap of 7 places. Its 100+ 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

Schema places #7 on merit, 4.3★ from 221 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 Yoast SEO – Advanced SEO with real-time guidance and built-in AI 10M+ · 4.8★ (27821) wp.org #1 2 Ultimate Blocks – 25+ Gutenberg Blocks for Block Editor 50K+ · 4.9★ (729) wp.org #2 3 Schema & Structured Data for WP & AMP 100K+ · 4.5★ (252) wp.org #3 ↑1 4 GEO Plugin by Squirrly SEO 30K+ · 4.6★ (683) wp.org #7 ↓2 3 too low 5 ThinkRank SEO – AI SEO Plugin for SEO & Google Search Console 20K+ · 4.9★ (36) wp.org #4 ↓1 1 too high 6 Create 6K+ · 4.3★ (25) wp.org #5 ↑1 1 too high 7 Schema 30K+ · 4.3★ (221) wp.org #15 ↑2 8 too low 8 OGEEAT 200+ · 5.0★ (7) wp.org #6 ↑1 2 too high 9 Screen Stay Awake 60+ · 5.0★ (6) wp.org #8 ↑1 1 too high 10 Schema Package – Structured Data & Rich Snippets Tool for SEO 200+ · 4.8★ (20) wp.org #21 11 too low 11 Search Atlas SEO – OTTO AI SEO Automation for WordPress 7K+ · 3.3★ (24) wp.org #11 12 SEO for AI Search 300+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #9 ↑1 3 too high 13 RankReady – AI SEO, Schema, llms.txt, AEO and GEO for ChatGPT, Gemini and Perplexity 500+ · 4.8★ (5) wp.org #17 ↑1 4 too low 14 Praison AI SEO 1K+ · 3.6★ (5) wp.org #13 ↑1 1 too high 15 Blockenberg — 645 Advanced Gutenberg Blocks, 683 Templates and AI Agent for WordPress Block Editor 1K+ · 4.6★ (5) wp.org #18 ↑3 3 too low 16 Prime SEO – AI SEO, LLMs.txt Generator, AI Bots Manager & AI Crawler Stats 100+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #19 ↑4 3 too low 17 AEO Engine 100+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #10 ↑2 7 too high 18 AI Generative Search Optimizer 200+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #14 ↑1 4 too high 19 Schema Scalpel 100+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #12 ↑1 7 too high 20 Oxyplug Howto Maker 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #16 ↑3 4 too high 21 AI SEO Tools – Alt Text, Meta Descriptions, Schema & AI Content 90+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #23 ↓1 2 too low 22 Bloqra – Gutenberg Blocks & Page Builder for Block Editor 10+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #20 ↑4 2 too high 23 TNT AI Writer – AI Content Generator, Trending Topic Finder & SEO Draft Writer 10+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #22 1 too high 24 GetSEOAgent — AI Bulk SEO Chat 90+ · 0.0★ (0) 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.