wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “mind”
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 “mind”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 7 of the top 20. 6 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
Shopper’s Mind shows at wp.org #8 but places #24 on merit, a gap of 16 places. Its 100+ installs carry it up the search order; its 0.0★ average from 0 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
Buried gem
Converter for Media – Optimize images | Convert WebP & AVIF places #10 on merit, 4.9★ from 1106 reviews, but shows at wp.org #17. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.
Yoast SEO – Advanced SEO with real-time guidance and built-in AI 10M+ · 4.8★ (27821)
wp.org #1 ↑1 2 
Antispam Bee 700K+ · 4.8★ (226)
wp.org #2 ↓1 3 
BuddyPress 90K+ · 4.1★ (375)
wp.org #3 4 
Really Simple Security – Simple and Performant Security (formerly Really Simple SSL) 3M+ · 4.9★ (8869)
wp.org #5 ↑2 1 too low 5 
My Calendar – Accessible Event Manager 20K+ · 4.7★ (159)
wp.org #6 ↓1 1 too low 6 
CMB2 300K+ · 5.0★ (91) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #4 2 too high 7 
Simply Schedule Appointments 50K+ · 5.0★ (155)
wp.org #9 2 too low 8 
Kadence Blocks — Page Builder Toolkit for Gutenberg Editor 600K+ · 4.8★ (333) heavy footprint
wp.org #10 ↑7 2 too low 9 
WP-Optimize – Cache, Compress images, Minify & Clean database to boost page speed & performance 1M+ · 4.8★ (2617)
wp.org #15 ↓2 6 too low 10 Converter for Media – Optimize images | Convert WebP & AVIF 500K+ · 4.9★ (1106)
wp.org #17 ↓2 7 too low 11 
Sucuri Security – Auditing, Malware Scanner and Security Hardening 600K+ · 4.2★ (386) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #7 ↓1 4 too high 12 
FluentSMTP – WP Mail SMTP Plugin with Amazon SES, SendGrid, Mailgun, Postmark, Cloudflare, toSend, Gmail and Any SMTP 700K+ · 4.8★ (410)
wp.org #14 ↓1 2 too low 13 
Customer Reviews for WooCommerce 80K+ · 4.8★ (1539)
wp.org #22 9 too low 14 
Cart Abandonment Recovery for WooCommerce – Recover Lost Sales with Automated Emails 300K+ · 4.8★ (626) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #12 ↑4 2 too high 15 
Advanced Product Fields (Product Addons) for WooCommerce 50K+ · 4.8★ (284)
wp.org #18 ↑1 3 too low 16 
Lightbox with PhotoSwipe 20K+ · 4.9★ (115)
wp.org #16 ↓5 17 
Sender – Newsletter, SMS and Email Marketing Automation for WooCommerce 5K+ · 4.8★ (83)
wp.org #13 ↓1 4 too high 18 
Beaver Builder Page Builder – Drag and Drop Website Builder 100K+ · 4.7★ (394)
wp.org #21 ↑1 3 too low 19 
Tutor LMS – eLearning and online course solution 100K+ · 4.4★ (590) heavy footprint
wp.org #20 1 too low 20 
Events Manager – Calendar, Bookings, Tickets, Appointments and more! 60K+ · 4.2★ (551) not PHP-current
wp.org #19 ↓1 1 too high 21 
The SEO Framework – Fast, Automated, Effortless. 200K+ · 4.9★ (380) not PHP-current
wp.org #24 3 too low 22 
MainWP Child – Securely Connects to the MainWP Dashboard to Manage Multiple Sites 700K+ · 5.0★ (71) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #11 11 too high 23 
Integration for Elementor forms – Sendinblue 8K+ · 4.8★ (20) thin reviews
wp.org #23 ↑2 24 Shopper’s Mind 100+ · 0.0★ (0) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews
wp.org #8 16 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.