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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “mixed content”

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 “mixed content”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 11 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

JSM Force HTTP to HTTPS / SSL – No Setup, Fast and Reliable shows at wp.org #6 but places #15 on merit, a gap of 9 places. Its 7K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 13 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Slider by Soliloquy – Responsive Image Slider for WordPress places #9 on merit, 4.7★ from 1025 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.

merit plugin wp.org
1 SSL Insecure Content Fixer 100K+ · 4.8★ (221) wp.org #1 2 Really Simple Security – Simple and Performant Security (formerly Really Simple SSL) 3M+ · 4.9★ (8869) wp.org #2 3 WP Force SSL & HTTPS SSL Redirect 80K+ · 4.7★ (179) wp.org #3 4 One Click SSL 10K+ · 4.9★ (139) wp.org #5 1 too low 5 WP Encryption: Easy HTTPS / SSL & Free SSL certificate, HTTPS redirect 50K+ · 4.9★ (1146) wp.org #8 3 too low 6 SSL Zen — SSL Certificate Installer & HTTPS Redirects 9K+ · 4.9★ (665) wp.org #7 1 too low 7 Easy HTTPS Redirection (SSL) 100K+ · 4.2★ (71) wp.org #4 3 too high 8 AI-Powered Carousel, Slider, Video & Photo Gallery Blocks by WP Carousel 60K+ · 4.7★ (434) wp.org #9 1 too low 9 Slider by Soliloquy – Responsive Image Slider for WordPress 30K+ · 4.7★ (1025) wp.org #17 8 too low 10 Royal Addons for Elementor – Addons and Templates Kit for Elementor 600K+ · 4.8★ (612) wp.org #14 ↓1 4 too low 11 Blogger Importer Extended 4K+ · 4.7★ (131) wp.org #11 ↑1 12 Auto-Install Free SSL – Generate & Install Free SSL Certificates 8K+ · 4.9★ (405) wp.org #19 ↓3 7 too low 13 Translate WordPress with GTranslate 900K+ · 4.9★ (4962) wp.org #23 ↓3 10 too low 14 Vigilant – 100% Free Security Suite: Firewall, 2FA, Login, Headers, Scanner… 3K+ · 5.0★ (24) wp.org #10 ↑1 4 too high 15 JSM Force HTTP to HTTPS / SSL – No Setup, Fast and Reliable 7K+ · 5.0★ (13) wp.org #6 9 too high 16 Carousel Horizontal Posts Content Slider 2K+ · 4.1★ (76) wp.org #12 ↓3 4 too high 17 SSL Mixed Content Fix 8K+ · 4.1★ (34) wp.org #13 ↓3 4 too high 18 Falcon – Cache, Performance, Security, Cleanup, and Tweaks 2K+ · 5.0★ (10) wp.org #15 ↓1 3 too high 19 Subscriptions for WooCommerce Recurring Payments with Membership Content Restriction 500+ · 5.0★ (5) wp.org #22 ↑1 3 too low 20 Image Ticker Carousel | by Creavi 500+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #18 ↑4 2 too high 21 Empty P Tag 700+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #20 ↓1 1 too high 22 Bulk Content Toolkit 50+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #16 ↓1 6 too high 23 Zen Site Security 70+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #24 1 too low 24 V Visual Slider 600+ · 2.5★ (2) wp.org #21 ↓3 3 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.