Plugin Pulse Beta
← Rankings

wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “plugin groups”

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 groups”, we and wp.org disagree on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 9 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

Groups 404 Redirect shows at wp.org #11 but places #22 on merit, a gap of 11 places. Its 1K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 4.6★ average from 10 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

WPForms – AI Form Builder for WordPress – Contact Forms, Payment Forms, Survey Form, Quiz & More places #10 on merit, 4.8★ from 14387 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 Groups – Memberships and Access Control 10K+ · 4.8★ (382) wp.org #2 ↑1 1 too low 2 Plugin Groups 1K+ · 4.3★ (31) wp.org #1 1 too high 3 ProfileGrid – User Profiles, Groups and Communities 5K+ · 4.6★ (236) wp.org #3 ↑1 4 Members – Membership & User Role Editor Plugin 300K+ · 4.9★ (1281) wp.org #6 ↑3 2 too low 5 Ultimate Member – User Profile, Registration, Login, Member Directory, Content Restriction & Membership Plugin 200K+ · 4.4★ (1445) wp.org #7 ↑1 2 too low 6 PublishPress Tag Groups: Stylish Displays For Your Tags and Categories 3K+ · 4.8★ (57) wp.org #5 ↑1 1 too high 7 All in One SEO – AI SEO Plugin to Boost SEO Rankings & Traffic (Schema, Local SEO, Sitemap & SEO Insights) 2M+ · 4.7★ (5231) wp.org #8 1 too low 8 P Private groups 1K+ · 4.9★ (49) wp.org #4 ↑1 4 too high 9 Forminator Forms – Contact Form, Payment Form & Custom Form Builder 600K+ · 4.8★ (2143) wp.org #15 6 too low 10 WPForms – AI Form Builder for WordPress – Contact Forms, Payment Forms, Survey Form, Quiz & More 5M+ · 4.8★ (14387) wp.org #18 ↓2 8 too low 11 Better Messages – Chat Rooms, Group Chat, Private Messages & AI Chat Bots 10K+ · 4.8★ (142) wp.org #12 ↓2 1 too low 12 GiveWP – Donation Plugin and Fundraising Platform 100K+ · 4.6★ (708) wp.org #9 ↓2 3 too high 13 Rank Math SEO – AI SEO Tools to Dominate SEO Rankings 4M+ · 4.8★ (7519) wp.org #20 7 too low 14 Plugin Organizer 10K+ · 4.7★ (227) wp.org #10 ↑1 4 too high 15 GTM4WP – A Google Tag Manager (GTM) plugin for WordPress 700K+ · 4.5★ (155) wp.org #14 ↓1 1 too high 16 WP Rollback – Rollback Plugins and Themes 200K+ · 4.9★ (215) wp.org #22 ↓3 6 too low 17 CartFlows – Funnel Builder & Checkout Plugin for WooCommerce 200K+ · 4.8★ (517) wp.org #19 ↑2 2 too low 18 Team – Team Members Showcase Plugin 10K+ · 4.5★ (67) wp.org #24 6 too low 19 Plugin Detective – Troubleshooting Conflicts 5K+ · 4.0★ (49) wp.org #17 ↑1 2 too high 20 Hyperlink Group Block 7K+ · 4.3★ (14) wp.org #16 ↑1 4 too high 21 WP Maps – Google Maps, OpenStreetMap, Mapbox, Store Locator with Search, Filters & Listings 60K+ · 4.3★ (122) wp.org #23 ↑1 2 too low 22 Groups 404 Redirect 1K+ · 4.6★ (10) wp.org #11 ↑1 11 too high 23 WP User Groups 600+ · 4.3★ (6) wp.org #13 ↑1 10 too high 24 BuddyPress Registration Groups 100+ · 4.9★ (7) wp.org #21 ↑2 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.