wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “monetize wp”
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 “monetize wp”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 7 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
Playgama: Embed Games and Monetize shows at wp.org #7 but places #19 on merit, a gap of 12 places. Its 80+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 2 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
WP Event Manager – Events Calendar, Registrations, Sell Tickets with WooCommerce 20K+ · 4.0★ (249)
wp.org #1 ↑1 2 
WP RSS Aggregator – RSS Import, Feed to Post, Autoblogging, AI Content 40K+ · 4.5★ (565)
wp.org #2 ↓1 3 
hCaptcha for WP 70K+ · 4.6★ (88)
wp.org #3 4 
Quads Ads Manager for Google AdSense 20K+ · 4.9★ (1087)
wp.org #6 ↑2 2 too low 5 
Masteriyo LMS – LMS Course Builder, Quizzes & Certificates 6K+ · 4.8★ (184)
wp.org #4 ↑1 1 too high 6 
WP Mobile Menu – The Mobile-Friendly Responsive Menu 70K+ · 4.7★ (256)
wp.org #5 ↑1 1 too high 7 
User Registration & Membership – Free & Paid Memberships, Subscriptions, Content Restriction, User Profile, Custom User Registration & Login Builder 50K+ · 4.8★ (832)
wp.org #9 ↑1 2 too low 8 
AdRotate Banner Manager 20K+ · 4.3★ (655)
wp.org #8 ↑1 9 
Content Control – The Ultimate Content Restriction Solution! Restrict Content, Create Conditional Blocks & More 40K+ · 4.9★ (575)
wp.org #10 ↑1 1 too low 10 
Classified Listing – AI-Powered Classified ads & Business Directory 9K+ · 4.8★ (138)
wp.org #13 ↑1 3 too low 11 
s2Member – Excellent for All Kinds of Memberships, Content Restriction Paywalls & Member Access Subscriptions 8K+ · 4.1★ (234)
wp.org #12 ↑1 1 too low 12 
Kit (formerly ConvertKit) – Email Newsletter, Email Marketing, Membership, Subscribers and Landing Pages 40K+ · 4.8★ (90)
wp.org #14 ↑1 2 too low 13 
Tutor LMS – eLearning and online course solution 100K+ · 4.4★ (590)
wp.org #19 ↑1 6 too low 14 
Directorist: AI-Powered Business Directory, Listings & Classified Ads 20K+ · 4.6★ (698)
wp.org #22 ↑1 8 too low 15 
Membership For WooCommerce 800+ · 4.4★ (28)
wp.org #11 ↑1 4 too high 16 
Content Egg – Affiliate Product Importer & Price Comparison 10K+ · 3.9★ (56)
wp.org #17 ↑1 1 too low 17 
Affiliate Super Assistent 1K+ · 4.6★ (36)
wp.org #21 ↑1 4 too low 18 
Ads.txt File Manager By Magicbid 2K+ · 5.0★ (5) thin reviews
wp.org #16 ↑1 2 too high 19 Playgama: Embed Games and Monetize 80+ · 5.0★ (2) thin reviews
wp.org #7 12 too high 20 
BeyondWords – AI audio for publishers 800+ · 3.6★ (27)
wp.org #24 4 too low 21 
AWeber – Free Sign Up Form and Landing Page Builder Plugin for Lead Generation and Email Newsletter Growth 8K+ · 2.6★ (25)
wp.org #18 ↑1 3 too high 22 
VenoMaps – OpenStreetMap & Privacy-Friendly Geo Maps 400+ · 4.2★ (5) thin reviews
wp.org #23 ↑1 1 too low 23 
GetResponse Official 4K+ · 4.3★ (4) thin reviews
wp.org #20 ↑1 3 too high 24 
In-feed ads for Google AdSense 6K+ · 5.0★ (1) thin reviews
wp.org #15 ↑1 9 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.