wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “plugin collections”
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 “plugin collections”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 7 of the top 20.
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 the install base is organic or host-pushed, and its risk of being pulled.
Ranked above its merit
WPC Smart Product Collections for WooCommerce shows at wp.org #10 but places #24 on merit, a gap of 14 places. Its 200+ installs carry it up the search order; its 3.0★ average from 2 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
UpdraftPlus: WP Backup & Migration Plugin 4M+ · 4.8★ (8709)
wp.org #1 2 
Members – Membership & User Role Editor Plugin 300K+ · 4.9★ (1281)
wp.org #4 2 too low 3 
Security Optimizer – The All-In-One Protection Plugin 1M+ · 4.5★ (157)
wp.org #2 ↑1 1 too high 4 
Speed Optimizer – The All-In-One Performance-Boosting Plugin 1M+ · 4.2★ (641)
wp.org #3 ↓1 1 too high 5 
Security Plugin, Firewall & Malware Scanner with Auto Removal 40K+ · 4.8★ (397)
wp.org #7 2 too low 6 
LiteSpeed Cache 7M+ · 4.8★ (2778)
wp.org #8 ↑1 2 too low 7 
Smash Balloon Social Photo Feed – Easy Social Feeds Plugin 1M+ · 4.9★ (4358)
wp.org #9 ↓1 2 too low 8 
TablePress – Tables in WordPress made easy 600K+ · 5.0★ (4625)
wp.org #11 ↑1 3 too low 9 
GTM4WP – A Google Tag Manager (GTM) plugin for WordPress 700K+ · 4.5★ (155)
wp.org #6 ↓1 3 too high 10 
WPCore Plugin Manager 9K+ · 4.8★ (32)
wp.org #5 ↑1 5 too high 11 
Easy Updates Manager 300K+ · 4.8★ (726)
wp.org #12 ↓1 1 too low 12 
Essential Addons for Elementor – Popular Elementor Templates & Widgets 1M+ · 4.9★ (4132)
wp.org #13 1 too low 13 
AWP Classifieds 3K+ · 4.6★ (301)
wp.org #14 1 too low 14 
LearnPress – WordPress LMS Plugin for Create and Sell Online Courses 70K+ · 4.3★ (597)
wp.org #17 ↑1 3 too low 15 
Modula Image Gallery – Photo Grid & Video Gallery 100K+ · 4.7★ (616)
wp.org #20 5 too low 16 
WP Super Cache 1M+ · 4.3★ (1346)
wp.org #15 ↑1 1 too high 17 
HivePress – Business Directory, Listings & Classified Ads Plugin 10K+ · 4.9★ (222)
wp.org #18 ↑1 1 too low 18 
Stop Spammers Classic 20K+ · 4.4★ (243)
wp.org #19 ↓2 1 too low 19 
WP Maps – Google Maps, OpenStreetMap, Mapbox, Store Locator with Search, Filters & Listings 60K+ · 4.3★ (122)
wp.org #16 ↓1 3 too high 20 
Access Governance for WordPress (aka AAM) 100K+ · 4.2★ (420)
wp.org #23 3 too low 21 
GenerateBlocks 200K+ · 4.9★ (122)
wp.org #22 1 too low 22 
User Post Collections 20+ · 5.0★ (2) thin reviews
wp.org #21 1 too high 23 
MultiSafepay plugin for WooCommerce 3K+ · 5.0★ (2) thin reviews
wp.org #24 1 too low 24 WPC Smart Product Collections for WooCommerce 200+ · 3.0★ (2) thin reviews
wp.org #10 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.