wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “mobile ads”
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 “mobile ads”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 12 of the top 20.
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 the install base is organic or host-pushed, and its risk of being pulled.
Ranked above its merit
Advanced Ads for WPBakery Page Builder shows at wp.org #10 but places #23 on merit, a gap of 13 places. Its 1K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 1 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
Buried gem
WPCode – Insert Headers and Footers + Custom Code Snippets – WordPress Code Manager places #12 on merit, 4.9★ from 1917 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.
Advanced Ads – Ad Manager & AdSense 90K+ · 4.9★ (1463)
wp.org #1 2 
Ad Inserter – Ad Manager & AdSense Ads 300K+ · 4.9★ (2433)
wp.org #2 3 
WooCommerce 7M+ · 4.5★ (4833)
wp.org #4 1 too low 4 
AMP for WP – Accelerated Mobile Pages 70K+ · 4.4★ (1319)
wp.org #6 2 too low 5 
Quads Ads Manager for Google AdSense 20K+ · 4.9★ (1087)
wp.org #8 3 too low 6 
Jetpack – AI Agents & MCP, Security, Backup & Analytics 3M+ · 3.7★ (2408)
wp.org #5 1 too high 7 
Popup Builder – Create highly converting, mobile friendly marketing popups. 200K+ · 4.7★ (2215)
wp.org #11 4 too low 8 
Google for WooCommerce 800K+ · 2.7★ (268) low rating, top placement
wp.org #3 5 too high 9 
Classified Listing – AI-Powered Classified ads & Business Directory 9K+ · 4.8★ (138)
wp.org #9 10 
Directorist: AI-Powered Business Directory, Listings & Classified Ads 20K+ · 4.6★ (698)
wp.org #15 ↓1 5 too low 11 
Ads.txt Manager 100K+ · 4.7★ (15) thin reviews
wp.org #7 4 too high 12 WPCode – Insert Headers and Footers + Custom Code Snippets – WordPress Code Manager 3M+ · 4.9★ (1917)
wp.org #22 ↓2 10 too low 13 
Ads.txt & App-ads.txt Manager for WordPress 2K+ · 4.8★ (48)
wp.org #12 1 too high 14 
PixelYourSite – Your smart PIXEL (TAG) & API Manager 400K+ · 4.3★ (281)
wp.org #19 5 too low 15 
Ad Invalid Click Protector (AICP) 10K+ · 4.7★ (62)
wp.org #17 2 too low 16 
Burst Statistics – Simple WordPress Analytics (Google Analytics Alternative) 200K+ · 4.9★ (186)
wp.org #23 ↑1 7 too low 17 
Easy Google Adsense and Banner Ads Manager – AdsforWP 1K+ · 4.6★ (43)
wp.org #13 4 too high 18 
BrikPanel: WooCommerce Dashboard & Analytics, Abandoned Cart Recovery, Order Export, Inventory Management & Bulk Editor 1K+ · 5.0★ (55)
wp.org #21 ↑1 3 too low 19 
CHP Ads Block Detector 800+ · 4.0★ (25)
wp.org #16 3 too high 20 
Corner Ad 300+ · 4.7★ (32)
wp.org #24 ↓1 4 too low 21 
Hafenstudios Ads – Ad Manager, AdSense & Banner Ads 100+ · 5.0★ (14) thin reviews
wp.org #18 3 too high 22 
AdFlow – Ad Inserter & Ad Manager: AdSense, Banner Ads & ads.txt 3K+ · 5.0★ (3) thin reviews
wp.org #14 8 too high 23 Advanced Ads for WPBakery Page Builder 1K+ · 5.0★ (1) thin reviews
wp.org #10 13 too high 24 
Ad Auto Insert H 900+ · 5.0★ (1) thin reviews
wp.org #20 ↑2 4 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.