wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “plugin install”
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 install”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 6 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
Download Plugin shows at wp.org #4 but places #9 on merit, a gap of 5 places. Its 60K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 4.5★ average from 27 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
Buried gem
WP STAGING – Backups & Restore, Migration & Clone Plugin – Cloud Backups, Scheduled Backups places #12 on merit, 4.8★ from 2470 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.
UpdraftPlus: WP Backup & Migration Plugin 4M+ · 4.8★ (8708)
wp.org #1 ↑1 2 
Widgets for Google Reviews 1M+ · 4.9★ (2667)
wp.org #2 ↓1 3 
Duplicator – Backups & Migration Plugin – Cloud Backups, Scheduled Backups, & More 1M+ · 4.9★ (4940)
wp.org #3 4 
Auto-Install Free SSL – Generate & Install Free SSL Certificates 8K+ · 4.9★ (405)
wp.org #5 1 too low 5 
Business Directory Plugin – Easy Listing & Member Directories for WordPress 10K+ · 4.6★ (504)
wp.org #6 1 too low 6 
Members – Membership & User Role Editor Plugin 300K+ · 4.9★ (1281)
wp.org #7 1 too low 7 
Security Plugin, Firewall & Malware Scanner with Auto Removal 40K+ · 4.8★ (397)
wp.org #8 1 too low 8 
All in One SEO – AI SEO Plugin to Boost SEO Rankings & Traffic (Schema, Local SEO, Sitemap & SEO Insights) 2M+ · 4.7★ (5231)
wp.org #10 ↓3 2 too low 9 Download Plugin 60K+ · 4.5★ (27)
wp.org #4 5 too high 10 
BackWPup – WordPress Backup & Restore Plugin 400K+ · 4.0★ (1323)
wp.org #9 ↑1 1 too high 11 
GiveWP – Donation Plugin and Fundraising Platform 100K+ · 4.6★ (708)
wp.org #13 ↓4 2 too low 12 WP STAGING – Backups & Restore, Migration & Clone Plugin – Cloud Backups, Scheduled Backups 100K+ · 4.8★ (2470)
wp.org #18 ↑1 6 too low 13 
FluentSMTP – WP Mail SMTP Plugin with Amazon SES, SendGrid, Mailgun, Postmark, Cloudflare, toSend, Gmail and Any SMTP 700K+ · 4.8★ (410)
wp.org #11 2 too high 14 
Plugin Organizer 10K+ · 4.7★ (227)
wp.org #12 2 too high 15 
Ultimate Member – User Profile, Registration, Login, Member Directory, Content Restriction & Membership Plugin 200K+ · 4.4★ (1445)
wp.org #22 ↓6 7 too low 16 
Independent Analytics – WordPress Analytics Plugin 100K+ · 4.8★ (167)
wp.org #19 ↑2 3 too low 17 
Plugin Notes Plus 9K+ · 5.0★ (62)
wp.org #15 2 too high 18 
Plugin Check (PCP) 10K+ · 4.5★ (36)
wp.org #14 4 too high 19 
Speed Optimizer – The All-In-One Performance-Boosting Plugin 1M+ · 4.2★ (641)
wp.org #21 ↓8 2 too low 20 
Security Optimizer – The All-In-One Protection Plugin 1M+ · 4.5★ (157)
wp.org #20 21 
Plugin Groups 1K+ · 4.3★ (31)
wp.org #16 ↑1 5 too high 22 
WP Plugin Manager – Deactivate plugins per page 3K+ · 4.4★ (23) thin reviews
wp.org #17 ↑1 5 too high 23 
Block Plugin Update 5K+ · 4.4★ (19) thin reviews
wp.org #23 ↓1 24 B Bulk Plugin Installation 300+ · 3.6★ (10) thin reviews
wp.org #24 ↓1 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.