wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “post dates”
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 “post dates”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 7 of the top 20. 2 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
Auto Update Post Date shows at wp.org #7 but places #23 on merit, a gap of 16 places. Its 2K+ 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
Forminator Forms – Contact Form, Payment Form & Custom Form Builder places #11 on merit, 4.8★ from 2144 reviews, but shows at wp.org #17. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.
Post Types Order 600K+ · 4.5★ (296)
wp.org #1 2 
Custom Post Type UI 1M+ · 4.6★ (276)
wp.org #2 ↑3 3 
Post SMTP – Complete Email Delivery and SMTP Solution with Email Logs, Alerts, Backup SMTP & Mobile App 300K+ · 4.7★ (528)
wp.org #3 ↓1 4 
Simple Custom Post Order 300K+ · 4.8★ (588)
wp.org #4 ↓1 5 
Post Views Counter 100K+ · 4.9★ (1237)
wp.org #6 ↑9 1 too low 6 
Schedule Post Changes With PublishPress Future: Unpublish, Delete, Change Status, Trash, Change Categories 100K+ · 4.5★ (172)
wp.org #5 ↓1 1 too high 7 
Folders – Unlimited Folders to Organize Media Library Folder, Pages, Posts, File Manager 90K+ · 5.0★ (1526)
wp.org #11 ↑6 4 too low 8 
Post Duplicator 200K+ · 4.8★ (80)
wp.org #8 ↓2 9 
پارسی دیت – Parsi Date 100K+ · 4.6★ (130)
wp.org #9 ↓1 10 
The Post Grid – Shortcode, Gutenberg Blocks and Elementor Addon for Post Grid 100K+ · 4.8★ (265)
wp.org #12 ↓1 2 too low 11 Forminator Forms – Contact Form, Payment Form & Custom Form Builder 600K+ · 4.8★ (2144)
wp.org #17 ↓7 6 too low 12 
Recent Posts Widget With Thumbnails 100K+ · 4.8★ (215)
wp.org #14 ↑4 2 too low 13 
Ultimate Post Kit – Elementor Post Grid, Post Carousel, Post Slider & Blog Layout Widgets 30K+ · 4.8★ (58)
wp.org #10 ↓1 3 too high 14 
Smart Post – Post Grid, Post Carousel, Post Slider Gutenberg Blocks for Blog & News 20K+ · 4.7★ (210) heavy footprint
wp.org #18 ↓5 4 too low 15 
Rate My Post – Star Rating Plugin by FeedbackWP 20K+ · 4.7★ (159) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #13 2 too high 16 
Custom Post Type Permalinks 200K+ · 4.8★ (71)
wp.org #16 ↓4 17 
Site Kit by Google – Analytics, Search Console, AdSense, Speed 5M+ · 4.2★ (1012)
wp.org #20 ↑3 3 too low 18 
Post Grid 30K+ · 4.3★ (163)
wp.org #22 ↑2 4 too low 19 
Post Slider and Post Carousel with Post Vertical Scrolling Widget – A Responsive Post Slider 10K+ · 4.7★ (31)
wp.org #19 ↓3 20 W WP Meta and Date Remover 80K+ · 4.2★ (71)
wp.org #23 ↓1 3 too low 21 
Auto Featured Image (Auto Post Thumbnail) 40K+ · 3.8★ (119) not PHP-current
wp.org #21 ↓1 22 
Duplicate Post – duplicate pages, copy content, clone posts 5K+ · 4.7★ (7) thin reviews
wp.org #15 7 too high 23 Auto Update Post Date 2K+ · 5.0★ (2) not PHP-current thin reviews
wp.org #7 16 too high 24 
Themify Portfolio Post 30K+ · 5.0★ (1) thin reviews
wp.org #24 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.