wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “performance analytics”

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 “performance analytics”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 6 of the top 20. 5 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

WooCommerce Analytics shows at wp.org #10 but places #22 on merit, a gap of 12 places. Its 20K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 4.5★ average from 4 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Yoast SEO – Advanced SEO with real-time guidance and built-in AI places #12 on merit, 4.8★ from 27821 reviews, but shows at wp.org #22. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin signals wp.org

Site Kit by Google – Analytics, Search Console, AdSense, Speed 5M+ · 4.2★ (1012) wp.org #1 2

Jetpack – AI Agents & MCP, Security, Backup & Analytics 3M+ · 3.7★ (2408) wp.org #2 3

Independent Analytics – WordPress Analytics Plugin 100K+ · 4.8★ (167) wp.org #3 4

Burst Statistics – Simple WordPress Analytics (Google Analytics Alternative) 200K+ · 4.9★ (186) wp.org #5 1 too low 5

Koko Analytics – Privacy-Friendly WordPress Analytics 70K+ · 5.0★ (245) wp.org #6 1 too low 6

MonsterInsights – Google Analytics Dashboard for WordPress (Website Stats Made Easy) 2M+ · 4.5★ (3157) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #4 2 too high 7

WP-Optimize – Cache, Compress images, Minify & Clean database to boost page speed & performance 1M+ · 4.8★ (2617) wp.org #9 2 too low 8

GA Google Analytics – Connect Google Analytics to WordPress 400K+ · 4.9★ (158) wp.org #7 1 too high 9

Hummingbird Performance – Cache & Page Speed Optimization for Core Web Vitals | Critical CSS | Minify CSS | Defer CSS Javascript | CDN 70K+ · 4.7★ (1488) wp.org #12 3 too low 10

WP Statistics – Simple, privacy-friendly Google Analytics alternative 500K+ · 4.1★ (759) wp.org #8 2 too high 11

Rank Math SEO – AI SEO Tools to Dominate SEO Rankings 4M+ · 4.8★ (7519) wp.org #13 2 too low 12

Yoast SEO – Advanced SEO with real-time guidance and built-in AI 10M+ · 4.8★ (27821) wp.org #22 10 too low 13

Complianz GDPR/CCPA Cookie Consent Banner 1M+ · 4.7★ (1668) wp.org #20 7 too low 14

Lara's Google Analytics (GA4) 8K+ · 4.7★ (122) wp.org #18 4 too low 15

Plausible Analytics 10K+ · 5.0★ (29) wp.org #14 1 too high 16

BrikPanel: WooCommerce Dashboard & Analytics, Abandoned Cart Recovery, Order Export, Inventory Management & Bulk Editor 1K+ · 5.0★ (55) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #15 1 too high 17

Beehive Analytics – Google Analytics Dashboard 20K+ · 4.5★ (13) thin reviews wp.org #11 6 too high 18

Swift Performance Lite 6K+ · 3.6★ (125) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #16 2 too high 19

Search Analytics for WP – Site Search Tracking 3K+ · 5.0★ (30) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #19 20

ExactMetrics – Google Analytics Dashboard for WordPress (Website Stats Plugin) 200K+ · 2.5★ (1546) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #17 3 too high 21

AWCA – The Great Analytics Insights for Your eStore 2K+ · 4.7★ (23) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews wp.org #23 2 too low 22

WooCommerce Analytics 20K+ · 4.5★ (4) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews wp.org #10 12 too high 23

HT Easy GA4 – Google Analytics WordPress Plugin 6K+ · 4.5★ (8) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews wp.org #24 1 too low 24

ShinyStat Analytics 1K+ · 5.0★ (1) thin reviews wp.org #21 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.