wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “page error”
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 “page error”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 10 of the top 20. 3 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
Page Optimize shows at wp.org #9 but places #24 on merit, a gap of 15 places. Its 200K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 3.0★ average from 5 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
Buried gem
Folders – Unlimited Folders to Organize Media Library Folder, Pages, Posts, File Manager places #11 on merit, 5.0★ from 1525 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.
Elementor Website Builder – more than just a page builder 10M+ · 4.5★ (7323) not PHP-currentheavy footprint
wp.org #1 2 
Super Page Cache – Cloudflare Cache, Page Speed & Core Web Vitals 70K+ · 4.8★ (517)
wp.org #2 3 
Smart Custom 404 Error Page 100K+ · 4.9★ (1197)
wp.org #5 ↓1 2 too low 4 
Kadence Blocks — Page Builder Toolkit for Gutenberg Editor 600K+ · 4.8★ (333) heavy footprint
wp.org #4 ↑2 5 E Error Log Monitor 20K+ · 4.3★ (48)
wp.org #3 2 too high 6 
WP Sitemap Page 200K+ · 4.8★ (205)
wp.org #8 2 too low 7 
Page scroll to id 100K+ · 4.9★ (225) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #6 ↓1 1 too high 8 
PPWP – Password Protect Pages 30K+ · 4.7★ (271)
wp.org #11 ↓2 3 too low 9 
Simple Page Ordering 100K+ · 4.7★ (131)
wp.org #10 ↑1 1 too low 10 
Page Builder by SiteOrigin 400K+ · 4.8★ (1005)
wp.org #16 ↑6 6 too low 11 Folders – Unlimited Folders to Organize Media Library Folder, Pages, Posts, File Manager 90K+ · 5.0★ (1525)
wp.org #20 ↑1 9 too low 12 
Website Builder by SeedProd — Theme Builder, Landing Page Builder, Coming Soon Page, Maintenance Mode 600K+ · 4.9★ (4699)
wp.org #21 9 too low 13 P Page Links To 100K+ · 4.9★ (157)
wp.org #14 1 too low 14 
CMS Tree Page View – Reorder Pages with a Drag-and-Drop Tree 50K+ · 4.9★ (365)
wp.org #19 ↓1 5 too low 15 
404 to 301 – Redirect Manager, 301 Redirection, 404 Error Logs & 404 Monitoring 100K+ · 4.7★ (321)
wp.org #18 ↓1 3 too low 16 
Fatal Error Notify 6K+ · 4.8★ (18) thin reviews
wp.org #13 ↓1 3 too high 17 
Greenshift – animation and page builder blocks 70K+ · 4.8★ (107) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #17 ↓1 18 
Smart Archive Page Remove 6K+ · 4.9★ (59)
wp.org #23 ↓3 5 too low 19 
Admin Menu Tree Page View 10K+ · 4.6★ (48)
wp.org #24 ↓1 5 too low 20 
Duplicate Page and Post 70K+ · 4.6★ (29) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #12 ↑1 8 too high 21 
Page Visits Counter – Lite 5K+ · 4.0★ (7) thin reviews
wp.org #7 14 too high 22 
Bold Page Builder 40K+ · 3.6★ (66)
wp.org #22 ↓3 23 
Error Log Viewer by BestWebSoft 5K+ · 4.8★ (9) thin reviews
wp.org #15 8 too high 24 P Page Optimize 200K+ · 3.0★ (5) host-installed base thin reviews
wp.org #9 ↑1 15 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.