wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “iphone”
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 “iphone”, we and wp.org disagree on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 13 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
HEIC Support shows at wp.org #13 but places #24 on merit, a gap of 11 places. Its 4K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 3 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
Buried gem
Visibility Logic for Elementor places #12 on merit, 4.8★ from 58 reviews, but shows at wp.org #23. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.
Favicon by RealFaviconGenerator 200K+ · 4.9★ (802)
wp.org #4 ↓2 3 too low 2 
AI Engine – MCP Server & AI Chatbot for WordPress, with Claude, ChatGPT & Gemini 90K+ · 4.9★ (874)
wp.org #5 ↑4 3 too low 3 
WooCommerce Stripe Payment Gateway 700K+ · 3.1★ (237) throws errorsnot PHP-current low rating, top placement
wp.org #1 2 too high 4 
Oliver POS – WooCommerce POS for iPhone, iPad & Android 700+ · 4.2★ (90) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #3 ↑1 1 too high 5 
WooPayments: Integrated WooCommerce Payments 800K+ · 3.4★ (177) throws errorsnot PHP-current low rating, top placement
wp.org #2 3 too high 6 
Google Authenticator 20K+ · 4.3★ (135)
wp.org #6 ↓1 7 
Compact WP Audio Player 20K+ · 4.1★ (69)
wp.org #8 ↓1 1 too low 8 
Ecwid by Lightspeed Ecommerce Shopping Cart 20K+ · 4.5★ (228) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #10 ↓2 2 too low 9 
Wonder Slider Lite 8K+ · 4.2★ (24) thin reviews
wp.org #7 2 too high 10 
Photo Engine (Media Organizer & Lightroom) 2K+ · 4.9★ (210)
wp.org #19 ↓3 9 too low 11 
WP-Appbox 2K+ · 4.5★ (63) not PHP-current
wp.org #15 ↓2 4 too low 12 Visibility Logic for Elementor 20K+ · 4.8★ (58)
wp.org #23 ↓1 11 too low 13 
HTML5 Maps 4K+ · 4.6★ (45)
wp.org #20 ↓3 7 too low 14 M Multi Device Switcher 10K+ · 4.3★ (11) thin reviews
wp.org #11 ↓5 3 too high 15 
Fix Image Rotation 4K+ · 4.4★ (27)
wp.org #18 ↓4 3 too low 16 
Payment Gateway of Stripe for WooCommerce 7K+ · 4.4★ (66) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #17 ↓2 1 too low 17 
Wonder Video Embed 4K+ · 5.0★ (5) thin reviews
wp.org #9 8 too high 18 
MOBILOOK — Mobile View & Mobile‑Friendly Test 1K+ · 4.9★ (27) not PHP-current
wp.org #22 ↓2 4 too low 19 B BSK PDF Manager 7K+ · 4.5★ (46) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #21 ↓2 2 too low 20 
Lightbox slider – Responsive Lightbox Gallery 3K+ · 4.7★ (24) thin reviews
wp.org #24 ↓3 4 too low 21 
Conditional Display for Mobile – Mobile Detect Plugin 1K+ · 5.0★ (7) thin reviews
wp.org #16 5 too high 22 F Favicon Rotator 20K+ · 4.3★ (12) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews
wp.org #12 ↓2 10 too high 23 
Bolt CTA Button – Floating Call Button for WordPress 2K+ · 5.0★ (4) thin reviews
wp.org #14 ↓2 9 too high 24 HEIC Support 4K+ · 5.0★ (3) thin reviews
wp.org #13 ↓2 11 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.