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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “image resizing”

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 “image resizing”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 10 of the top 20. 1 plugin is 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

Image Optimizer – Compress Images and Convert to WebP or AVIF shows at wp.org #3 but places #19 on merit, a gap of 16 places. Its 1M+ installs carry it up the search order; its 1.7★ average from 81 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

10Web Booster – Website speed optimization, Cache & Page Speed optimizer places #8 on merit, 4.6★ from 405 reviews, but shows at wp.org #14. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 EWWW Image Optimizer 1M+ · 4.8★ (1842) wp.org #1 2 ShortPixel Image Optimizer – Optimize Images, Convert WebP & AVIF 300K+ · 4.5★ (830) wp.org #2 3 Imagify Image Optimization: Optimize Images | Compress & Convert to WebP/AVIF 900K+ · 4.3★ (1656) wp.org #4 ↓1 1 too low 4 Modula Image Gallery – Photo Grid & Video Gallery 100K+ · 4.7★ (616) wp.org #5 ↑1 1 too low 5 Smush – Image Optimization, Compression, Lazy Load, WebP & CDN 1M+ · 4.8★ (6053) wp.org #6 ↓1 1 too low 6 Featured Image from URL (FIFU) 60K+ · 4.6★ (264) wp.org #8 2 too low 7 Image Widget 100K+ · 4.9★ (287) wp.org #9 ↓1 2 too low 8 10Web Booster – Website speed optimization, Cache & Page Speed optimizer 60K+ · 4.6★ (405) wp.org #14 ↓1 6 too low 9 Robo Gallery – Photo & Image Slider 40K+ · 4.3★ (406) wp.org #13 ↓2 4 too low 10 Resize Image After Upload 80K+ · 4.8★ (56) wp.org #10 ↓1 11 Smart Image Resize for WooCommerce 7K+ · 4.6★ (82) wp.org #12 1 too low 12 Kraken.io Image Optimizer – Compress, Convert to WebP & AVIF, Resize & Bulk Optimize 10K+ · 4.5★ (119) wp.org #15 ↓1 3 too low 13 Cloudflare Image Resizing – Optimize & Accelerate Your Images 200+ · 4.5★ (17) wp.org #7 6 too high 14 Drag and Drop Multiple File Upload for Contact Form 7 60K+ · 4.8★ (94) wp.org #17 ↓1 3 too low 15 Cloudinary – Deliver Images and Videos at Scale 5K+ · 4.0★ (64) wp.org #11 ↓1 4 too high 16 Flipbox – Awesomes Flip Boxes Image Overlay 9K+ · 4.7★ (149) wp.org #19 ↓1 3 too low 17 Auto Upload Images 20K+ · 4.3★ (106) wp.org #20 ↓1 3 too low 18 Image Hotspot – Map Image Annotation 3K+ · 4.9★ (22) wp.org #16 ↓1 2 too high 19 Image Optimizer – Compress Images and Convert to WebP or AVIF 1M+ · 1.7★ (81) wp.org #3 ↑1 16 too high 20 Smart Auto Upload Images – Import External Images 5K+ · 4.3★ (6) wp.org #22 2 too low 21 WPSSO Tune WP Image Editors 800+ · 5.0★ (6) wp.org #21 ↓1 22 Image Ticker Carousel | by Creavi 500+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #23 ↓2 1 too low 23 Toolszu Image Optimizer 200+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #24 ↓2 1 too low 24 CodingBunny Image Optimizer 600+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #18 ↓1 6 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.