wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “plugin conflicts”
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 conflicts”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 10 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 the install base is organic or host-pushed, and its risk of being pulled.
Ranked above its merit
Editor Cleanup For Elementor: clean up and solve plugin conflicts with the Elementor editor shows at wp.org #14 but places #24 on merit, a gap of 10 places. Its 200+ 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
GeoDirectory – WP Business Directory Plugin and Classified Listings Directory places #12 on merit, 4.8★ from 716 reviews, but shows at wp.org #19. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.
UpdraftPlus: WP Backup & Migration Plugin 4M+ · 4.8★ (8708)
wp.org #1 2 
Payment Plugins for Stripe WooCommerce 100K+ · 4.8★ (303)
wp.org #3 1 too low 3 
BackWPup – WordPress Backup & Restore Plugin 400K+ · 4.0★ (1323)
wp.org #4 ↑5 1 too low 4 
GiveWP – Donation Plugin and Fundraising Platform 100K+ · 4.6★ (708)
wp.org #5 ↑1 1 too low 5 
Plugin Detective – Troubleshooting Conflicts 5K+ · 4.0★ (49)
wp.org #2 3 too high 6 
Plugin Organizer 10K+ · 4.7★ (227)
wp.org #6 ↑2 7 
Security Plugin, Firewall & Malware Scanner with Auto Removal 40K+ · 4.8★ (397)
wp.org #8 ↑4 1 too low 8 
FluentSMTP – WP Mail SMTP Plugin with Amazon SES, SendGrid, Mailgun, Postmark, Cloudflare, toSend, Gmail and Any SMTP 700K+ · 4.8★ (410)
wp.org #7 1 too high 9 
Ultimate Member – User Profile, Registration, Login, Member Directory, Content Restriction & Membership Plugin 200K+ · 4.4★ (1445)
wp.org #13 4 too low 10 
Payment Plugins for PayPal WooCommerce 80K+ · 4.8★ (127)
wp.org #10 ↑11 11 
SEOPress – AI SEO Plugin & On-site SEO 300K+ · 4.8★ (1267)
wp.org #16 ↑1 5 too low 12 GeoDirectory – WP Business Directory Plugin and Classified Listings Directory 10K+ · 4.8★ (716)
wp.org #19 ↑3 7 too low 13 
Plugin Notes Plus 9K+ · 5.0★ (62)
wp.org #11 2 too high 14 
Independent Analytics – WordPress Analytics Plugin 100K+ · 4.8★ (167)
wp.org #15 ↑8 1 too low 15 
Plugin Check (PCP) 10K+ · 4.5★ (36)
wp.org #9 ↑1 6 too high 16 
GTM4WP – A Google Tag Manager (GTM) plugin for WordPress 700K+ · 4.5★ (155)
wp.org #12 4 too high 17 
Easy Updates Manager 300K+ · 4.8★ (726)
wp.org #21 ↑3 4 too low 18 
Smash Balloon Social Photo Feed – Easy Social Feeds Plugin 1M+ · 4.9★ (4358)
wp.org #24 ↓4 6 too low 19 
CartFlows – Funnel Builder & Checkout Plugin for WooCommerce 200K+ · 4.8★ (517)
wp.org #23 4 too low 20 
WP Rollback – Rollback Plugins and Themes 200K+ · 4.9★ (215)
wp.org #22 2 too low 21 
Freesoul Deactivate Plugins – Disable plugins on individual WordPress pages 8K+ · 4.8★ (104)
wp.org #18 ↑1 3 too high 22 
Plugin Load Filter 7K+ · 4.8★ (52)
wp.org #17 ↓1 5 too high 23 
SiteGuard WP Plugin 600K+ · 4.3★ (15) host-installed base thin reviews
wp.org #20 ↓2 3 too high 24 Editor Cleanup For Elementor: clean up and solve plugin conflicts with the Elementor editor 200+ · 5.0★ (2) thin reviews
wp.org #14 10 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.