wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “look”
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 “look”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 8 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
WPC Smart Quick View for WooCommerce shows at wp.org #5 but places #13 on merit, a gap of 8 places. Its 80K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 4.9★ average from 31 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
Buried gem
Customer Reviews for WooCommerce places #11 on merit, 4.8★ from 1539 reviews, but shows at wp.org #19. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.
TablePress – Tables in WordPress made easy 600K+ · 5.0★ (4625)
wp.org #1 2 
BuddyPress 90K+ · 4.1★ (375)
wp.org #2 3 
Maintenance 1M+ · 4.4★ (869)
wp.org #4 1 too low 4 
Members – Membership & User Role Editor Plugin 300K+ · 4.9★ (1281)
wp.org #7 3 too low 5 
Backup Migration 80K+ · 4.9★ (1338)
wp.org #10 ↑3 5 too low 6 
Social Preview and Open Graph Tags 50K+ · 4.6★ (122)
wp.org #6 7 
Akismet Anti-spam: Spam Protection 5M+ · 4.7★ (1187)
wp.org #8 ↓1 1 too low 8 
Post Types Order 600K+ · 4.5★ (296)
wp.org #9 ↑1 1 too low 9 
WooCommerce PayPal Payments 800K+ · 2.9★ (583) throws errorsnot PHP-current low rating, top placement
wp.org #3 6 too high 10 
Imagify Image Optimization: Optimize Images | Compress & Convert to WebP/AVIF 900K+ · 4.3★ (1656)
wp.org #12 ↓1 2 too low 11 Customer Reviews for WooCommerce 80K+ · 4.8★ (1539)
wp.org #19 ↓2 8 too low 12 
OG — Better Share on Social Media 20K+ · 4.8★ (216)
wp.org #14 2 too low 13 WPC Smart Quick View for WooCommerce 80K+ · 4.9★ (31) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #5 8 too high 14 
XML Sitemap Generator for Google 1M+ · 4.8★ (2233)
wp.org #16 2 too low 15 
Duplicator – Backups & Migration Plugin – Cloud Backups, Scheduled Backups, & More 1M+ · 4.9★ (4940) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #11 ↓3 4 too high 16 
WP Super Cache 1M+ · 4.3★ (1346)
wp.org #13 ↑7 3 too high 17 
MC4WP: Mailchimp for WordPress 1M+ · 4.8★ (1497)
wp.org #17 ↑2 18 
Popups for Divi 100K+ · 4.8★ (442)
wp.org #21 3 too low 19 
Meta Box – A Framework for Dynamic Websites 500K+ · 4.8★ (165)
wp.org #18 ↑3 1 too high 20 
MailPoet – Newsletters, Email Marketing, and Automation 500K+ · 4.4★ (1435) heavy footprint
wp.org #20 ↓8 21 
Slider, Gallery, and Carousel by MetaSlider – Image Slider, Video Slider 500K+ · 4.6★ (743)
wp.org #24 3 too low 22 
One Click Demo Import 1M+ · 4.3★ (79) host-installed base
wp.org #15 7 too high 23 
Broken Link Checker 500K+ · 3.8★ (605) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #23 ↓5 24 
Rara One Click Demo Import 20K+ · 2.7★ (7) 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.