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← Rankings

wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “load time”

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 “load time”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 6 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

Query Loop Load More shows at wp.org #16 but places #23 on merit, a gap of 7 places. Its 900+ 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.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Yoast SEO – Advanced SEO with real-time guidance and built-in AI 10M+ · 4.8★ (27821) wp.org #1 2 Smush – Image Optimization, Compression, Lazy Load, WebP & CDN 1M+ · 4.8★ (6053) wp.org #2 3 Ajax Load More – Infinite Scroll, Load More, & Lazy Load 30K+ · 4.8★ (287) wp.org #4 1 too low 4 a3 Lazy Load 80K+ · 4.3★ (148) wp.org #3 1 too high 5 Wordfence Security – Firewall, Malware Scan, and Login Security 5M+ · 4.7★ (5039) wp.org #6 ↓1 1 too low 6 W3 Total Cache 900K+ · 4.4★ (5420) wp.org #7 ↑9 1 too low 7 LazyLoad Plugin – Lazy Load Images, Videos, and Iframes 100K+ · 4.2★ (139) wp.org #5 ↑1 2 too high 8 WP-Optimize – Cache, Compress images, Minify & Clean database to boost page speed & performance 1M+ · 4.8★ (2617) wp.org #10 ↓2 2 too low 9 WP Fastest Cache – WordPress Cache Plugin 1M+ · 4.9★ (4228) wp.org #12 ↑1 3 too low 10 Lazy Load for Videos 9K+ · 4.4★ (105) wp.org #8 ↑1 2 too high 11 Elementor Website Builder – more than just a page builder 10M+ · 4.5★ (7323) wp.org #13 ↑2 2 too low 12 Visitor Traffic Real Time Statistics 30K+ · 4.1★ (233) wp.org #14 ↓2 2 too low 13 Optimole – Optimize Images | Convert WebP & AVIF | CDN & Lazy Load | Image Optimization 200K+ · 4.7★ (640) wp.org #20 ↓1 7 too low 14 Plugin Load Filter 7K+ · 4.8★ (52) wp.org #11 ↓1 3 too high 15 Flying Images: Optimize and Lazy Load Images for Faster Page Speed 2K+ · 4.8★ (26) wp.org #9 ↓2 6 too high 16 BlogVault Backup & Staging 80K+ · 4.6★ (332) wp.org #21 ↓1 5 too low 17 Backup and Staging by WP Time Capsule 10K+ · 4.0★ (128) wp.org #15 ↑8 2 too high 18 WP Time Slots Booking Form 1K+ · 5.0★ (41) wp.org #18 19 Disable Lazy Load 9K+ · 4.5★ (23) wp.org #19 ↑2 20 Load Combined Core Block Assets 1K+ · 5.0★ (6) wp.org #17 ↓3 3 too high 21 Widget Visibility Time Scheduler 1K+ · 5.0★ (8) wp.org #23 2 too low 22 Simple Lazy Load Videos 200+ · 5.0★ (5) wp.org #24 ↓2 2 too low 23 Query Loop Load More 900+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #16 ↑1 7 too high 24 Date Time Picker for WPForms 1K+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #22 ↑2 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.