wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “not found”
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 “not found”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 6 of the top 20. 1 plugin is 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
Resource Not Found Placeholder | Prevent redirections due to not foud resources shows at wp.org #5 but places #22 on merit, a gap of 17 places. Its 20+ installs carry it up the search order; its 4.5★ average from 2 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
Buried gem
301 Redirects – Redirect Manager places #7 on merit, 4.7★ from 578 reviews, but shows at wp.org #11. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.
Smart Custom 404 Error Page 100K+ · 4.9★ (1197)
wp.org #1 2 
The Events Calendar 600K+ · 4.2★ (2461)
wp.org #2 3 
Yoast SEO – Advanced SEO with real-time guidance and built-in AI 10M+ · 4.8★ (27821)
wp.org #4 ↑2 1 too low 4 
Colorlib 404 Customizer 5K+ · 4.7★ (51)
wp.org #3 1 too high 5 
Security Plugin, Firewall & Malware Scanner with Auto Removal 40K+ · 4.8★ (397)
wp.org #7 ↑16 2 too low 6 
Postie 10K+ · 4.7★ (139) not PHP-current
wp.org #6 ↑4 7 301 Redirects – Redirect Manager 300K+ · 4.7★ (578)
wp.org #11 ↓3 4 too low 8 
Redis Object Cache 500K+ · 4.5★ (179)
wp.org #8 ↓3 9 
Custom Post Type UI 1M+ · 4.6★ (276)
wp.org #9 ↑2 10 
Supreme Modules Lite – Divi Theme, Extra Theme and Divi Builder 200K+ · 4.8★ (109)
wp.org #10 ↓3 11 
Admin and Site Enhancements (ASE) 200K+ · 5.0★ (423)
wp.org #15 ↑3 4 too low 12 
Fluent Forms – Customizable Contact Forms, Survey, Quiz, & Conversational Form Builder 800K+ · 4.8★ (807)
wp.org #14 ↓1 2 too low 13 
Redirection 2M+ · 4.4★ (703)
wp.org #12 ↑9 1 too high 14 
Converter for Media – Optimize images | Convert WebP & AVIF 500K+ · 4.9★ (1106)
wp.org #23 ↓7 9 too low 15 
Antispam Bee 700K+ · 4.8★ (226)
wp.org #16 ↑1 1 too low 16 
All in One SEO – AI SEO Plugin to Boost SEO Rankings & Traffic (Schema, Local SEO, Sitemap & SEO Insights) 2M+ · 4.7★ (5231) not PHP-currentheavy footprint
wp.org #19 ↓4 3 too low 17 
Download Monitor 80K+ · 4.5★ (525)
wp.org #24 7 too low 18 
Kadence Blocks — Page Builder Toolkit for Gutenberg Editor 600K+ · 4.8★ (333) heavy footprint
wp.org #18 19 
WP Crontrol 300K+ · 4.4★ (167)
wp.org #20 ↓8 1 too low 20 
Go Live Update Urls 90K+ · 4.5★ (59)
wp.org #17 ↑2 3 too high 21 
One Click Demo Import 1M+ · 4.3★ (79) host-installed base
wp.org #13 ↓4 8 too high 22 Resource Not Found Placeholder | Prevent redirections due to not foud resources 20+ · 4.5★ (2) thin reviews
wp.org #5 ↓1 17 too high 23 D Disable Author Archives 10K+ · 4.4★ (7) thin reviews
wp.org #22 1 too high 24 
Custom 404 Error Page 1K+ · 4.1★ (9) thin reviews
wp.org #21 ↑1 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.