wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “multiple wordpress”

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 “multiple wordpress”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 10 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

Multiple Roles shows at wp.org #8 but places #16 on merit, a gap of 8 places. Its 5K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 4.7★ average from 15 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

WP Fastest Cache – WordPress Cache Plugin places #9 on merit, 4.9★ from 4228 reviews, but shows at wp.org #14. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin signals wp.org

Yoast SEO – Advanced SEO with real-time guidance and built-in AI 10M+ · 4.8★ (27821) wp.org #1 2

Translate WordPress with GTranslate 900K+ · 4.9★ (4962) wp.org #3 1 too low 3

MonsterInsights – Google Analytics Dashboard for WordPress (Website Stats Made Easy) 2M+ · 4.5★ (3157) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #2 1 too high 4

Forminator Forms – Contact Form, Payment Form & Custom Form Builder 600K+ · 4.8★ (2143) wp.org #4 5

Hustle – Email Marketing, Lead Generation, Optins, Popups 80K+ · 4.4★ (859) wp.org #6 1 too low 6

WPForms – AI Form Builder for WordPress – Contact Forms, Payment Forms, Survey Form, Quiz & More 5M+ · 4.8★ (14387) wp.org #9 ↑1 3 too low 7

BackWPup – WordPress Backup & Restore Plugin 400K+ · 4.0★ (1323) not PHP-current wp.org #5 2 too high 8

MainWP Dashboard: Self-hosted WordPress Management for Agencies 20K+ · 4.9★ (2354) not PHP-current wp.org #10 ↑9 2 too low 9

WP Fastest Cache – WordPress Cache Plugin 1M+ · 4.9★ (4228) wp.org #14 ↓2 5 too low 10

Drag and Drop Multiple File Upload for Contact Form 7 60K+ · 4.8★ (94) wp.org #11 ↓2 1 too low 11

Site Kit by Google – Analytics, Search Console, AdSense, Speed 5M+ · 4.2★ (1012) wp.org #12 ↑1 1 too low 12

WPCode – Insert Headers and Footers + Custom Code Snippets – WordPress Code Manager 3M+ · 4.9★ (1915) wp.org #17 5 too low 13

Burst Statistics – Simple WordPress Analytics (Google Analytics Alternative) 200K+ · 4.9★ (186) wp.org #16 ↑5 3 too low 14

WordPress Importer 2M+ · 3.1★ (327) wp.org #7 7 too high 15

WP 2FA – Two-factor authentication for WordPress 100K+ · 4.7★ (184) wp.org #20 ↑3 5 too low 16 M Multiple Roles 5K+ · 4.7★ (15) thin reviews wp.org #8 8 too high 17

Wordfence Security – Firewall, Malware Scan, and Login Security 5M+ · 4.7★ (5038) heavy footprint wp.org #24 7 too low 18

GTM4WP – A Google Tag Manager (GTM) plugin for WordPress 700K+ · 4.5★ (155) wp.org #21 ↓1 2 too low 20

Co-Authors, Multiple Authors and Guest Authors in an Author Box with PublishPress Authors 20K+ · 4.9★ (114) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #18 ↓3 2 too high 21

MainWP Child – Securely Connects to the MainWP Dashboard to Manage Multiple Sites 700K+ · 5.0★ (71) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #13 ↓2 8 too high 22

WC Multiple Email Recipients 4K+ · 5.0★ (10) thin reviews wp.org #15 ↓1 7 too high 23

Address Book & Multiple Shipping for WooCommerce 1K+ · 4.8★ (20) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews wp.org #19 ↓1 4 too high 24

WP Create Multiple Posts & Pages 1K+ · 4.9★ (10) thin reviews wp.org #23 ↓1 1 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.