wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “latest post”
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 “latest post”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 9 of the top 20.
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
Latest Posts Block – Dynamic Posts Grid, Posts List, Posts Tile with Stunning Layouts for WordPress Blogs & Pages shows at wp.org #6 but places #24 on merit, a gap of 18 places. Its 6K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 4.0★ average from 1 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
Buried gem
TablePress – Tables in WordPress made easy places #12 on merit, 5.0★ from 4625 reviews, but shows at wp.org #20. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.
Latest Post Shortcode 4K+ · 4.8★ (46)
wp.org #1 2 
Post Types Order 600K+ · 4.5★ (296)
wp.org #2 3 
Post SMTP – Complete Email Delivery and SMTP Solution with Email Logs, Alerts, Backup SMTP & Mobile App 300K+ · 4.7★ (528)
wp.org #4 ↓1 1 too low 4 
Simple Custom Post Order 300K+ · 4.8★ (588)
wp.org #5 1 too low 5 
Wordfence Security – Firewall, Malware Scan, and Login Security 5M+ · 4.7★ (5040)
wp.org #7 ↓1 2 too low 6 
The Post Grid – Shortcode, Gutenberg Blocks and Elementor Addon for Post Grid 100K+ · 4.8★ (265)
wp.org #8 ↓1 2 too low 7 
Yoast SEO – Advanced SEO with real-time guidance and built-in AI 10M+ · 4.8★ (27820)
wp.org #14 ↑7 7 too low 8 
Rate My Post – Star Rating Plugin by FeedbackWP 20K+ · 4.7★ (159)
wp.org #9 ↑11 1 too low 9 
Post Type Switcher 200K+ · 4.8★ (255)
wp.org #10 ↑4 1 too low 10 
Smart Post – Post Grid, Post Carousel, Post Slider Gutenberg Blocks for Blog & News 20K+ · 4.7★ (210)
wp.org #12 ↓1 2 too low 11 
Duplicate Post 300K+ · 4.9★ (1623)
wp.org #17 ↓8 6 too low 12 TablePress – Tables in WordPress made easy 600K+ · 5.0★ (4625)
wp.org #20 8 too low 13 
Slider, Gallery, and Carousel by MetaSlider – Image Slider, Video Slider 500K+ · 4.6★ (743)
wp.org #15 2 too low 14 
Latest Posts 4K+ · 4.6★ (7) thin reviews
wp.org #3 ↑1 11 too high 15 
Public Post Preview 100K+ · 4.6★ (79)
wp.org #11 ↓1 4 too high 16 
Content Views – Post Grid & Filter (Shortcode, Blocks, Elementor Widgets) 100K+ · 4.8★ (333)
wp.org #24 ↓6 8 too low 17 
Post Slider and Post Carousel with Post Vertical Scrolling Widget – A Responsive Post Slider 10K+ · 4.7★ (31)
wp.org #13 ↓1 4 too high 18 
AnWP Post Grid and Post Carousel Slider for Elementor 20K+ · 4.9★ (84)
wp.org #21 3 too low 19 
Noptin – Newsletter, New Post Notifications & Email Automation 10K+ · 4.5★ (120)
wp.org #22 3 too low 20 
Display Post Types – Post Grid, post list and post sliders 8K+ · 5.0★ (26)
wp.org #19 1 too high 21 
WooCommerce PayPal Payments 800K+ · 2.9★ (583)
wp.org #23 2 too low 22 
Ocean Posts Slider 10K+ · 5.0★ (6) thin reviews
wp.org #16 ↑1 6 too high 23 E ETH Redirect to Latest Post 100+ · 4.5★ (8) thin reviews
wp.org #18 ↓2 5 too high 24 Latest Posts Block – Dynamic Posts Grid, Posts List, Posts Tile with Stunning Layouts for WordPress Blogs & Pages 6K+ · 4.0★ (1) thin reviews
wp.org #6 ↑2 18 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.