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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “page signature”

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 signature”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 14 of the top 20. 2 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

Electronic Signature Add-on for Fluent Forms shows at wp.org #14 but places #21 on merit, a gap of 7 places. Its 200+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 1 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Security Plugin, Firewall & Malware Scanner with Auto Removal places #8 on merit, 4.8★ from 397 reviews, but shows at wp.org #21. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Wordfence Security – Firewall, Malware Scan, and Login Security 5M+ · 4.7★ (5038) wp.org #1 2 Super Page Cache – Cloudflare Cache, Page Speed & Core Web Vitals 70K+ · 4.8★ (517) wp.org #2 3 Ninja Forms – Contact Form Builder with Calculators, Quizzes, Signatures & AI Form Builder 500K+ · 4.4★ (1397) wp.org #3 4 Forminator Forms – Contact Form, Payment Form & Custom Form Builder 600K+ · 4.8★ (2143) wp.org #5 ↓1 1 too low 5 WPForms – AI Form Builder for WordPress – Contact Forms, Payment Forms, Survey Form, Quiz & More 5M+ · 4.8★ (14387) wp.org #9 4 too low 6 Yoast SEO – Advanced SEO with real-time guidance and built-in AI 10M+ · 4.8★ (27821) wp.org #13 ↓1 7 too low 7 Widgets for Google Reviews 1M+ · 4.9★ (2667) wp.org #12 ↑2 5 too low 8 Security Plugin, Firewall & Malware Scanner with Auto Removal 40K+ · 4.8★ (397) wp.org #21 13 too low 9 Signature Add-On for Gravity Forms 1K+ · 3.9★ (21) wp.org #6 3 too high 10 Page Visits Counter – Lite 5K+ · 4.0★ (7) wp.org #4 ↑1 6 too high 11 Ultra Addons for Contact Form 7 60K+ · 4.8★ (107) wp.org #24 13 too low 12 Page Builder: Pagelayer – Drag and Drop website builder 400K+ · 3.9★ (104) wp.org #18 6 too low 13 Digital Signature Add-on for WooCommerce 900+ · 3.1★ (19) wp.org #7 6 too high 14 WP Forms Signature Contract Add-On 800+ · 4.4★ (5) wp.org #8 6 too high 15 Ninja Forms Signature Contract Add-On 300+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #11 4 too high 16 Digital Signature Checkout For WooCommerce 200+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #10 6 too high 17 PRyC WP: Add custom content to post and page (top/bottom) 1K+ · 5.0★ (7) wp.org #20 3 too low 18 Formidable Forms Signature Online Contract Automation 200+ · 4.0★ (2) wp.org #17 1 too high 19 B bbP Signature 100+ · 2.7★ (6) wp.org #15 4 too high 20 Contact Forms 7 Digital Signature Add-On 300+ · 2.6★ (5) wp.org #19 1 too high 21 Electronic Signature Add-on for Fluent Forms 200+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #14 ↓1 7 too high 22 Easy Digital Downloads Digital Signature 60+ · 3.0★ (4) wp.org #23 1 too low 23 Signature Field With Contact Form 7 300+ · 3.0★ (2) wp.org #16 7 too high 24 Digital Signature for eCommerce Checkout 20+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #22 2 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.