wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “page load”
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 load”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 7 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 #10 but places #24 on merit, a gap of 14 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
Page Builder by SiteOrigin places #10 on merit, 4.8★ from 1005 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 
Smush – Image Optimization, Compression, Lazy Load, WebP & CDN 1M+ · 4.8★ (6053)
wp.org #3 4 
Ajax Load More – Infinite Scroll, Load More, & Lazy Load 30K+ · 4.8★ (287)
wp.org #5 ↑1 1 too low 5 
a3 Lazy Load 80K+ · 4.3★ (148)
wp.org #4 ↑1 1 too high 6 
WP-Optimize – Cache, Compress images, Minify & Clean database to boost page speed & performance 1M+ · 4.8★ (2617)
wp.org #6 ↓2 7 
LazyLoad Plugin – Lazy Load Images, Videos, and Iframes 100K+ · 4.2★ (139)
wp.org #7 8 
Kadence Blocks — Page Builder Toolkit for Gutenberg Editor 600K+ · 4.8★ (333) heavy footprint
wp.org #8 ↑4 9 
Page scroll to id 100K+ · 4.9★ (225) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #9 ↓2 10 Page Builder by SiteOrigin 400K+ · 4.8★ (1005)
wp.org #20 10 too low 11 
PPWP – Password Protect Pages 30K+ · 4.7★ (271)
wp.org #18 ↑1 7 too low 12 
Lazy Load for Videos 9K+ · 4.4★ (105) not PHP-current
wp.org #11 ↑3 1 too high 13 
Load More Products for WooCommerce 10K+ · 4.9★ (275) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #13 ↓4 14 P Page Links To 100K+ · 4.9★ (157)
wp.org #19 ↓1 5 too low 15 
Plugin Load Filter 7K+ · 4.8★ (52)
wp.org #14 ↓1 1 too high 16 
Wordfence Security – Firewall, Malware Scan, and Login Security 5M+ · 4.7★ (5039) heavy footprint
wp.org #23 7 too low 17 
Disqus Conditional Load 3K+ · 4.5★ (64)
wp.org #16 1 too high 18 
Loading Page with Loading Screen 10K+ · 4.6★ (124)
wp.org #24 6 too low 19 
Flying Images: Optimize and Lazy Load Images for Faster Page Speed 2K+ · 4.8★ (26)
wp.org #15 4 too high 20 
Lazy Load for Comments 2K+ · 4.7★ (28)
wp.org #17 3 too high 21 
Greenshift – animation and page builder blocks 70K+ · 4.8★ (107) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #21 22 
Page Visits Counter – Lite 5K+ · 4.0★ (7) thin reviews
wp.org #12 ↓1 10 too high 23 
Lazy Load Control For Elementor – Remove the Lazy Load attribute from specific images in Elementor 3K+ · 4.9★ (15) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews
wp.org #22 1 too high 24 P Page Optimize 200K+ · 3.0★ (5) host-installed base thin reviews
wp.org #10 ↓2 14 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.