wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “one column”

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

Genesis Widget Column Classes shows at wp.org #7 but places #21 on merit, a gap of 14 places. Its 5K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 4.5★ average from 8 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Fluent Forms – Customizable Contact Forms, Survey, Quiz, & Conversational Form Builder places #12 on merit, 4.8★ from 807 reviews, but shows at wp.org #20. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin signals wp.org

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 #1 2

All-in-One WP Migration and Backup 5M+ · 4.5★ (7676) wp.org #2 3

All-In-One Security (AIOS) – Security and Firewall 1M+ · 4.7★ (1720) wp.org #3 4

Forminator Forms – Contact Form, Payment Form & Custom Form Builder 600K+ · 4.8★ (2143) wp.org #6 2 too low 5

Make Column Clickable for Elementor 100K+ · 4.9★ (53) wp.org #4 1 too high 6

One User Avatar | User Profile Picture 100K+ · 4.7★ (41) wp.org #5 1 too high 7

Easy Social Feed – All In One Social Feed Plugin for WordPress 30K+ · 4.6★ (502) wp.org #11 4 too low 8

Admin and Site Enhancements (ASE) 200K+ · 5.0★ (423) wp.org #12 4 too low 9

All-in-One Video Gallery – Video Player & Galleries for YouTube, Vimeo & Self-Hosted Videos 20K+ · 4.8★ (136) wp.org #10 1 too low 10

Options for Twenty Twenty-One 6K+ · 4.9★ (64) wp.org #9 1 too high 11

Wordfence Security – Firewall, Malware Scan, and Login Security 5M+ · 4.7★ (5038) heavy footprint wp.org #15 ↓1 4 too low 12

Fluent Forms – Customizable Contact Forms, Survey, Quiz, & Conversational Form Builder 800K+ · 4.8★ (807) wp.org #20 ↓2 8 too low 13

wpDataTables – WordPress Data Table, Dynamic Tables & Table Charts Plugin 60K+ · 4.5★ (449) wp.org #23 ↑1 10 too low 14

Essential Addons for Elementor – Popular Elementor Templates & Widgets 1M+ · 4.9★ (4132) not PHP-current wp.org #21 ↑1 7 too low 15

ShopEngine – All-in-One Elementor WooCommerce Builder with eCommerce Templates & Woo Widgets 100K+ · 4.6★ (212) wp.org #22 ↑1 7 too low 16

Equal Height Columns 10K+ · 4.9★ (41) wp.org #16 17

Featured Image Column 2K+ · 4.5★ (12) thin reviews wp.org #8 9 too high 18

Ultra Addons for Contact Form 7 60K+ · 4.8★ (107) wp.org #24 6 too low 19

Code Snippets 1M+ · 4.7★ (510) not PHP-current wp.org #19 ↑1 20

Broken Link Checker 500K+ · 3.8★ (605) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #14 ↓1 6 too high 21

Genesis Widget Column Classes 5K+ · 4.5★ (8) thin reviews wp.org #7 14 too high 22

WPMasterToolKit (WPMTK) – All in one plugin 5K+ · 5.0★ (28) wp.org #18 ↑1 4 too high 23

Users Registration Date – Sortable Users Column 3K+ · 5.0★ (6) thin reviews wp.org #17 6 too high 24

WPC Admin Columns 1K+ · 5.0★ (4) thin reviews wp.org #13 ↑2 11 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.