wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “most active”
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 “most active”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 6 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
Live Carts for WooCommerce: Track Active, Abandoned, and Converted Carts & Wishlists in Real Time! shows at wp.org #15 but places #23 on merit, a gap of 8 places. Its 900+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 4 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
Buried gem
Yoast SEO – Advanced SEO with real-time guidance and built-in AI places #9 on merit, 4.8★ from 27821 reviews, but shows at wp.org #13. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.
Anti-Spam, Spam FireWall by CleanTalk 200K+ · 4.8★ (3221)
wp.org #1 2 
Rank Math SEO – AI SEO Tools to Dominate SEO Rankings 4M+ · 4.8★ (7519)
wp.org #2 3 
UpdraftPlus: WP Backup & Migration Plugin 4M+ · 4.8★ (8708)
wp.org #3 4 
Widgets for Google Reviews 1M+ · 4.9★ (2667)
wp.org #4 5 
Security Plugin, Firewall & Malware Scanner with Auto Removal 40K+ · 4.8★ (397)
wp.org #6 1 too low 6 
Product Feed PRO for WooCommerce by AdTribes – Product Feeds for WooCommerce 80K+ · 4.7★ (1071)
wp.org #8 2 too low 7 
WPForms – AI Form Builder for WordPress – Contact Forms, Payment Forms, Survey Form, Quiz & More 5M+ · 4.8★ (14387)
wp.org #9 2 too low 8 
Cart Abandonment Recovery for WooCommerce – Recover Lost Sales with Automated Emails 300K+ · 4.8★ (626) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #5 3 too high 9 Yoast SEO – Advanced SEO with real-time guidance and built-in AI 10M+ · 4.8★ (27821)
wp.org #13 4 too low 10 
Jetpack – AI Agents & MCP, Security, Backup & Analytics 3M+ · 3.7★ (2408)
wp.org #7 3 too high 11 
WP Mail SMTP by WPForms – SMTP for Reliable Email Delivery with Gmail, Outlook, Amazon SES, Brevo, Other SMTP & More 4M+ · 4.8★ (5209)
wp.org #12 1 too low 12 
Burst Statistics – Simple WordPress Analytics (Google Analytics Alternative) 200K+ · 4.9★ (186)
wp.org #11 1 too high 13 
TablePress – Tables in WordPress made easy 600K+ · 5.0★ (4625)
wp.org #18 5 too low 14 
WP ULike – Like Buttons, Voting & Engagement Analytics 60K+ · 4.8★ (283)
wp.org #14 15 
LiteSpeed Cache 7M+ · 4.8★ (2778)
wp.org #16 1 too low 16 
MonsterInsights – Google Analytics Dashboard for WordPress (Website Stats Made Easy) 2M+ · 4.5★ (3157) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #10 6 too high 17 
Responsive Lightbox & Gallery 100K+ · 4.9★ (2003)
wp.org #23 6 too low 18 
Akismet Anti-spam: Spam Protection 5M+ · 4.7★ (1187)
wp.org #19 1 too low 19 
Filter Everything — WordPress & WooCommerce Filters 50K+ · 4.6★ (154)
wp.org #17 2 too high 20 
WP Statistics – Simple, privacy-friendly Google Analytics alternative 500K+ · 4.1★ (758)
wp.org #20 21 
All-In-One Security (AIOS) – Security and Firewall 1M+ · 4.7★ (1720)
wp.org #24 3 too low 22 
GiveWP – Donation Plugin and Fundraising Platform 100K+ · 4.6★ (708) throws errorsnot PHP-currentheavy footprint
wp.org #21 1 too high 23 Live Carts for WooCommerce: Track Active, Abandoned, and Converted Carts & Wishlists in Real Time! 900+ · 5.0★ (4) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews
wp.org #15 8 too high 24 
Aruba HiSpeed Cache 100K+ · 3.0★ (10) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews
wp.org #22 2 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.