wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “mailchimp shortcode”

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 “mailchimp shortcode”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 15 of the top 20. 5 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

Block for Mailchimp – grow your email list with signup forms shows at wp.org #7 but places #24 on merit, a gap of 17 places. Its 2K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 3.7★ average from 3 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

WPForms – AI Form Builder for WordPress – Contact Forms, Payment Forms, Survey Form, Quiz & More places #12 on merit, 4.8★ from 14387 reviews, but shows at wp.org #22. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin signals wp.org

MC4WP: Mailchimp for WordPress 1M+ · 4.8★ (1497) wp.org #1 2

Mailmunch Forms for Mailchimp 10K+ · 4.6★ (372) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #4 2 too low 3

Anti-Spam, Spam FireWall by CleanTalk 200K+ · 4.8★ (3221) wp.org #10 ↓1 7 too low 4

Mailchimp List Subscribe Form 60K+ · 2.6★ (77) low rating, top placement wp.org #2 2 too high 5

Ultimate Member – User Profile, Registration, Login, Member Directory, Content Restriction & Membership Plugin 200K+ · 4.4★ (1445) wp.org #9 ↑1 4 too low 6

Forminator Forms – Contact Form, Payment Form & Custom Form Builder 600K+ · 4.8★ (2144) wp.org #11 5 too low 7

Another Mailchimp Widget 4K+ · 4.6★ (9) thin reviews wp.org #3 4 too high 8

Forms for Mailchimp by Optin Cat – Grow Your MailChimp List 2K+ · 4.4★ (77) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #5 ↑1 3 too high 9

Paid Membership Subscriptions – Effortless Memberships, Recurring Payments & Content Restriction 10K+ · 4.7★ (270) wp.org #13 ↑4 4 too low 10

Jetpack – AI Agents & MCP, Security, Backup & Analytics 3M+ · 3.7★ (2408) wp.org #12 ↑9 2 too low 11

User Profile Builder – Beautiful User Registration Forms, User Profiles & User Role Editor 40K+ · 4.7★ (738) wp.org #19 8 too low 12

WPForms – AI Form Builder for WordPress – Contact Forms, Payment Forms, Survey Form, Quiz & More 5M+ · 4.8★ (14387) wp.org #22 ↓4 10 too low 13

Hustle – Email Marketing, Lead Generation, Optins, Popups 80K+ · 4.4★ (859) wp.org #20 7 too low 14

Essential Addons for Elementor – Popular Elementor Templates & Widgets 1M+ · 4.9★ (4132) not PHP-current wp.org #18 ↓3 4 too low 15

WP WooCommerce Mailchimp 5K+ · 4.3★ (35) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #6 ↓1 9 too high 16

ElementsKit Elementor Addons – Advanced Widgets & Templates Addons for Elementor 1M+ · 4.9★ (2051) wp.org #23 7 too low 17

MailOptin – Popup, Optin Forms & Email Newsletters for Mailchimp, HubSpot, AWeber Etc. 10K+ · 4.8★ (438) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #15 ↓3 2 too high 18

Subscribe Forms – Beautiful Email Forms, Embedded Newsletter Forms & MailChimp Form 2K+ · 4.7★ (60) wp.org #14 4 too high 19

MailChimp Subscribe Form, Optin Builder, PopUp Builder, Form Builder 2K+ · 4.0★ (65) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #8 11 too high 20

Simple CAPTCHA with Cloudflare Turnstile 200K+ · 4.7★ (262) not PHP-current wp.org #17 ↓4 3 too high 21

MetForm – Contact Form, Survey, Quiz, Conditional Forms, Form Templates & Custom Form Builder for Elementor 500K+ · 4.7★ (509) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #21 ↑3 22

Redirection for Contact Form 7 200K+ · 4.7★ (275) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #24 2 too low 23

Block for Mailchimp – grow your email list with signup forms 2K+ · 3.7★ (3) thin reviews wp.org #7 17 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.