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← Rankings

wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “http api”

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 “http api”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 14 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

SteadFast API shows at wp.org #3 but places #20 on merit, a gap of 17 places. Its 8K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 3.3★ average from 3 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

LiteSpeed Cache places #7 on merit, 4.8★ from 2778 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 HTTP Headers 40K+ · 4.3★ (70) wp.org #1 ↑1 2 WP Encryption: Easy HTTPS / SSL & Free SSL certificate, HTTPS redirect 50K+ · 4.9★ (1146) wp.org #5 ↑7 3 too low 3 Disable WP REST API 30K+ · 4.8★ (36) wp.org #4 ↑2 1 too low 4 Rank Math SEO – AI SEO Tools to Dominate SEO Rankings 4M+ · 4.8★ (7519) wp.org #10 ↓5 6 too low 5 PixelYourSite – Your smart PIXEL (TAG) & API Manager 400K+ · 4.3★ (281) wp.org #7 2 too low 6 API KEY for Google Maps 30K+ · 4.9★ (55) wp.org #9 ↓1 3 too low 7 LiteSpeed Cache 7M+ · 4.8★ (2778) wp.org #16 ↓6 9 too low 8 WP Cron HTTP Auth 1K+ · 5.0★ (17) wp.org #8 ↑1 9 JWT Authentication for WP REST APIs 10K+ · 4.4★ (74) wp.org #13 ↑1 4 too low 10 HTTP Requests Manager 1K+ · 5.0★ (8) wp.org #6 ↓2 4 too high 11 WPGet API – Connect to any external REST API 10K+ · 5.0★ (32) wp.org #19 ↑1 8 too low 12 Disable XML-RPC-API 100K+ · 4.2★ (43) wp.org #17 ↓1 5 too low 13 WP Consent API 200K+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #2 ↓1 11 too high 14 Contact Form to Any API 8K+ · 5.0★ (28) wp.org #15 1 too low 15 Datafeedr API 4K+ · 4.0★ (13) wp.org #11 4 too high 16 Proxy Cache Purge 50K+ · 4.4★ (26) wp.org #12 ↑1 4 too high 17 JWT Authentication for WP REST API 60K+ · 4.4★ (53) wp.org #21 ↓3 4 too low 18 Custom API for WP 1K+ · 4.8★ (45) wp.org #20 ↑3 2 too low 19 Mailgun for WordPress 80K+ · 3.8★ (49) wp.org #23 ↓2 4 too low 20 SteadFast API 8K+ · 3.3★ (3) wp.org #3 17 too high 21 R REST API Log 5K+ · 3.6★ (24) wp.org #18 ↑1 3 too high 22 JSON API Auth 600+ · 4.7★ (11) wp.org #24 2 too low 23 JSM Force HTTP to HTTPS / SSL – No Setup, Fast and Reliable 7K+ · 5.0★ (13) wp.org #22 1 too high 24 Emalls Extraction API – Official 9K+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #14 ↑3 10 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.