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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “jpeg thumbnail”

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 “jpeg thumbnail”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 13 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 the install base is organic or host-pushed, and its risk of being pulled.

Ranked above its merit

Thumbnail Editor shows at wp.org #5 but places #19 on merit, a gap of 14 places. Its 600+ installs carry it up the search order; its 3.0★ average from 5 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

WP-Optimize – Cache, Compress images, Minify & Clean database to boost page speed & performance places #11 on merit, 4.8★ from 2617 reviews, but shows at wp.org #24. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 A AJAX Thumbnail Rebuild 30K+ · 4.8★ (90) wp.org #1 2 Perfect Images: Regenerate Thumbnails, Image Sizes, WebP & AVIF 60K+ · 4.8★ (279) wp.org #3 1 too low 3 TinyPNG Image Optimization – Image Compression JPEG & PNG | Convert to WebP & AVIF 100K+ · 4.5★ (181) wp.org #4 1 too low 4 Kama Thumbnail 8K+ · 4.7★ (15) wp.org #2 2 too high 5 ShortPixel Image Optimizer – Optimize Images, Convert WebP & AVIF 300K+ · 4.5★ (830) wp.org #8 ↑1 3 too low 6 EWWW Image Optimizer 1M+ · 4.8★ (1843) wp.org #9 ↑1 3 too low 7 Image Watermark 40K+ · 4.2★ (298) wp.org #11 ↑1 4 too low 8 Photo Gallery, Sliders, Proofing and Themes – NextGEN Gallery 300K+ · 4.3★ (4342) wp.org #18 ↓3 10 too low 9 Resize Image After Upload 80K+ · 4.8★ (56) wp.org #10 ↑1 1 too low 10 Imagify Image Optimization: Optimize Images | Compress & Convert to WebP/AVIF 900K+ · 4.3★ (1657) wp.org #17 7 too low 11 WP-Optimize – Cache, Compress images, Minify & Clean database to boost page speed & performance 1M+ · 4.8★ (2617) wp.org #24 13 too low 12 ThumbPress – Compress Images, Manage Thumbnails, Detect Image Issues, WebP/AVIF, Lazy Loading, Hotlinking & More 20K+ · 3.7★ (117) wp.org #13 ↑1 1 too low 13 Kraken.io Image Optimizer – Compress, Convert to WebP & AVIF, Resize & Bulk Optimize 10K+ · 4.5★ (119) wp.org #20 ↑2 7 too low 14 Optimus – WordPress Image Optimizer 30K+ · 4.2★ (69) wp.org #19 ↑1 5 too low 15 Modern Image Formats 100K+ · 3.6★ (26) wp.org #12 ↑1 3 too high 16 Square Thumbnails 700+ · 4.2★ (19) wp.org #22 ↑1 6 too low 17 Disable Thumbnails, Threshold and Image Options 1K+ · 5.0★ (5) wp.org #16 1 too high 18 Squeeze – Browser-Based Image Compression & WebP Converter (No API, No Limits) 3K+ · 5.0★ (6) wp.org #21 3 too low 19 Thumbnail Editor 600+ · 3.0★ (5) wp.org #5 ↑1 14 too high 20 Thumbnail Manager 100+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #6 ↑1 14 too high 21 JPEG PNG Compressor 50+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #7 ↑1 14 too high 22 Rapls PDF Image Creator – PDF Thumbnails & Featured Images 100+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #23 ↑1 1 too low 23 Image Optimizer – Compress Images and Convert to WebP or AVIF 1M+ · 1.7★ (81) wp.org #14 ↑4 9 too high 24 WP GIF Uploader – Animated GIF Upload and Thumbnails 1K+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #15 ↑4 9 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.