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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “php settings”

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 “php settings”, we and wp.org disagree on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 15 of the top 20. 1 plugin is 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

Eli's PHP Compatibility Scanner shows at wp.org #6 but places #17 on merit, a gap of 11 places. Its 1K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 2 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

WP Mail SMTP by WPForms – SMTP for Reliable Email Delivery with Gmail, Outlook, Amazon SES, Brevo, Other SMTP & More places #8 on merit, 4.8★ from 5209 reviews, but shows at wp.org #18. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Insert PHP Code Snippet 90K+ · 4.9★ (707) wp.org #4 3 too low 2 Woody Code Snippets – Insert PHP, CSS, JS, and Header/Footer Scripts 50K+ · 4.5★ (221) wp.org #3 1 too low 3 Easy PHP Settings 1K+ · 5.0★ (7) wp.org #1 2 too high 4 Custom PHP Settings 10K+ · 4.4★ (15) wp.org #2 2 too high 5 Code Snippets 1M+ · 4.7★ (510) wp.org #5 6 WPCode – Insert Headers and Footers + Custom Code Snippets – WordPress Code Manager 3M+ · 4.9★ (1916) wp.org #12 ↓2 6 too low 7 FluentSnippets – High-Performance Code Snippets, Header & Footer Code, Custom CSS & PHP Code Manager 50K+ · 4.7★ (78) wp.org #10 ↑1 3 too low 8 WP Mail SMTP by WPForms – SMTP for Reliable Email Delivery with Gmail, Outlook, Amazon SES, Brevo, Other SMTP & More 4M+ · 4.8★ (5209) wp.org #18 ↑1 10 too low 9 WPVibe – MCP Server for WordPress, works with Claude, ChatGPT & other AI MCP agents 100K+ · 5.0★ (199) wp.org #17 8 too low 10 All-In-One Security (AIOS) – Security and Firewall 1M+ · 4.7★ (1720) wp.org #19 ↓2 9 too low 11 C Cryout Serious Theme Settings 40K+ · 4.3★ (16) wp.org #7 ↓1 4 too high 12 WP Super Cache 1M+ · 4.3★ (1346) wp.org #22 10 too low 13 WP Console – WordPress PHP Console powered by PsySH 20K+ · 5.0★ (21) wp.org #15 2 too low 14 Import / Export Customizer Settings 50K+ · 4.7★ (6) wp.org #8 ↓1 6 too high 15 Version Info – Server Health Monitor, PHP & MySQL Version Display, Environment Indicators 10K+ · 5.0★ (15) wp.org #23 ↓2 8 too low 16 Emoji Settings 2K+ · 5.0★ (12) wp.org #20 ↓2 4 too low 17 Eli's PHP Compatibility Scanner 1K+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #6 ↑2 11 too high 18 Advanced Settings 3 200+ · 3.9★ (7) wp.org #13 5 too high 19 WP All Import – Import SEO Settings for Rank Math SEO 6K+ · 4.5★ (4) wp.org #9 10 too high 20 phpinfo() WP – Site Health, PHP Compatibility & Server Audit 3K+ · 4.5★ (8) wp.org #24 4 too low 21 WP All Import – Import SEO Settings for Yoast SEO 20K+ · 2.8★ (11) wp.org #11 ↑1 10 too high 22 WP All Import – Import SEO Settings for All In One SEO 1K+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #16 6 too high 23 PHP Vitals 300+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #14 9 too high 24 WPLifeCycle – Free PHP Version Info & Website Manager 100+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #21 ↓1 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.