wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “inactive users”
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 “inactive users”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 12 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
CartFlush – Auto Clear WooCommerce Cart for Inactive Users shows at wp.org #3 but places #18 on merit, a gap of 15 places. Its 60+ installs carry it up the search order; its 4.3★ average from 3 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
Buried gem
Widget Importer & Exporter places #11 on merit, 4.7★ from 117 reviews, but shows at wp.org #21. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.
Inactive Logout 10K+ · 4.8★ (106)
wp.org #1 2 
Import and export users and customers 70K+ · 4.7★ (259)
wp.org #2 3 
User Registration & Membership – Free & Paid Memberships, Subscriptions, Content Restriction, User Profile, Custom User Registration & Login Builder 50K+ · 4.8★ (832)
wp.org #6 ↓2 3 too low 4 
Code Snippets 1M+ · 4.7★ (510) not PHP-current
wp.org #4 ↓1 5 
User Frontend – Membership, User Registration, User Profile, User Directory & Content Restriction with Frontend Post Submission 20K+ · 4.1★ (537) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #5 ↑2 6 
WP Bulk Delete 90K+ · 4.6★ (131)
wp.org #7 ↓2 1 too low 7 
UserFeedback – Create Interactive Feedback Form, User Surveys, and Polls in Seconds 200K+ · 4.8★ (309)
wp.org #12 ↓1 5 too low 8 
Open User Map – Interactive Leaflet Maps 10K+ · 5.0★ (70)
wp.org #13 ↓1 5 too low 9 
Newsletter – Send awesome emails from WordPress 200K+ · 4.6★ (1205) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #14 ↓1 5 too low 10 
WP User Manager – Registration Form, Login Form, User Profile Builder & Member Directory 10K+ · 4.7★ (350) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #15 ↓1 5 too low 11 Widget Importer & Exporter 200K+ · 4.7★ (117)
wp.org #21 ↓1 10 too low 12 
WP Social Ninja – Embed Social Feeds, User Reviews & Chat Widgets 30K+ · 4.8★ (71)
wp.org #20 ↓1 8 too low 13 
Password Policy Manager 6K+ · 4.4★ (14) thin reviews
wp.org #8 ↓2 5 too high 14 
Auto Delete Post – Ultimate plugin for deleting a post automatically 300+ · 5.0★ (7) thin reviews
wp.org #9 ↓1 5 too high 15 
Melapress Login Security 3K+ · 4.8★ (20) thin reviews
wp.org #16 ↓1 1 too low 16 
Bulk Delete Users by Email 100+ · 4.1★ (10) thin reviews
wp.org #10 ↓1 6 too high 17 
aBlocks – Gutenberg Blocks, User Dashboard Builder, Popup Builder, Form Builder & Animation Builder 2K+ · 5.0★ (26) heavy footprint
wp.org #23 ↓1 6 too low 18 CartFlush – Auto Clear WooCommerce Cart for Inactive Users 60+ · 4.3★ (3) thin reviews
wp.org #3 ↓1 15 too high 19 
User Login History 10K+ · 4.6★ (29) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #17 ↓1 2 too high 20 
WP Last Login 10K+ · 3.8★ (26)
wp.org #19 ↓1 1 too high 21 
Intranet & Private Site – All-In-One Intranet 3K+ · 5.0★ (11) thin reviews
wp.org #24 ↓1 3 too low 22 
Users Bulk Delete With Preview 100+ · 5.0★ (2) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews
wp.org #11 ↓1 11 too high 23 
Last Users Order Column for WooCommerce 80+ · 5.0★ (2) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews
wp.org #18 ↓1 5 too high 24 
Clicks User Manager — Bulk Delete, Edit Roles, Email & Export WordPress Users 60+ · 5.0★ (1) thin reviews
wp.org #22 ↓1 2 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.