wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “personal data export”
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 “personal data export”, we and wp.org disagree on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 12 of the top 20. 6 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
Post Export Import with Media shows at wp.org #4 but places #14 on merit, a gap of 10 places. Its 1K+ 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
Members – Membership & User Role Editor Plugin places #7 on merit, 4.9★ from 1281 reviews, but shows at wp.org #11. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.
Complianz GDPR/CCPA Cookie Consent Banner 1M+ · 4.7★ (1668)
wp.org #2 ↑1 1 too low 2 
GDPR Data Request Form 5K+ · 4.9★ (14) thin reviews
wp.org #1 1 too high 3 
Rank Math SEO – AI SEO Tools to Dominate SEO Rankings 4M+ · 4.8★ (7519)
wp.org #5 2 too low 4 
Code Snippets 1M+ · 4.7★ (510) not PHP-current
wp.org #3 ↓1 1 too high 5 
All-in-One WP Migration and Backup 5M+ · 4.5★ (7676)
wp.org #8 ↑1 3 too low 6 
The Events Calendar 600K+ · 4.2★ (2461)
wp.org #9 ↑2 3 too low 7 Members – Membership & User Role Editor Plugin 300K+ · 4.9★ (1281)
wp.org #11 ↓5 4 too low 8 
Masteriyo LMS – LMS Course Builder, Quizzes & Certificates 6K+ · 4.8★ (184) throws errorsnot PHP-currentheavy footprint
wp.org #6 ↑2 2 too high 9 
WP ULike – Like Buttons, Voting & Engagement Analytics 60K+ · 4.8★ (283)
wp.org #13 4 too low 10 
Ninja Forms – Contact Form Builder with Calculators, Quizzes, Signatures & AI Form Builder 500K+ · 4.4★ (1397)
wp.org #14 ↓2 4 too low 11 
Events Manager – Calendar, Bookings, Tickets, Appointments and more! 60K+ · 4.2★ (551) not PHP-current
wp.org #10 1 too high 12 
PiWeb Export Customers Users & Guest customer to CSV for WooCommerce 1K+ · 4.7★ (30)
wp.org #7 5 too high 13 
Independent Analytics – WordPress Analytics Plugin 100K+ · 4.8★ (167)
wp.org #16 ↑2 3 too low 14 Post Export Import with Media 1K+ · 4.5★ (8) thin reviews
wp.org #4 10 too high 15 
Limit Login Attempts Security – Login Security, 2FA, Firewall, Brute Force Prevention 1M+ · 4.8★ (1488)
wp.org #20 5 too low 16 
CookieYes – Cookie Banner for Cookie Consent (Easy to setup GDPR/CCPA Compliant Cookie Notice) 1M+ · 4.8★ (3236)
wp.org #22 ↓1 6 too low 17 
Tutor LMS – eLearning and online course solution 100K+ · 4.4★ (590) heavy footprint
wp.org #17 ↓2 18 
FlexTable – Data Table Sync with Google Sheets 3K+ · 4.6★ (35)
wp.org #12 ↑4 6 too high 19 
Better Messages – Chat Rooms, Group Chat, Private Messages & AI Chat Bots 10K+ · 4.8★ (142)
wp.org #24 5 too low 20 
Redirection for Contact Form 7 200K+ · 4.7★ (275) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #18 ↓1 2 too high 21 
Activity Log – Monitor User and Agent Changes 200K+ · 4.3★ (74)
wp.org #21 22 
WooCommerce PayPal Payments 800K+ · 2.9★ (583) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #15 ↓1 7 too high 23 
Chart Block – Visualize Data with Bar, Line, Pie Charts 1K+ · 4.8★ (10) thin reviews
wp.org #19 4 too high 24 
EU Order Withdrawal Button for WooCommerce 6K+ · 4.6★ (7) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews
wp.org #23 ↓1 1 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.