wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “post plugins”
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 plugins”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 3 of the top 20. 3 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.
Buried gem
WP Fastest Cache – WordPress Cache Plugin places #11 on merit, 4.9★ from 4228 reviews, but shows at wp.org #15. 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 
UpdraftPlus: WP Backup & Migration Plugin 4M+ · 4.8★ (8706)
wp.org #2 ↑1 3 
Post SMTP – Complete Email Delivery and SMTP Solution with Email Logs, Alerts, Backup SMTP & Mobile App 300K+ · 4.7★ (528)
wp.org #4 ↓2 1 too low 4 
Simple Custom Post Order 300K+ · 4.8★ (587)
wp.org #6 ↓1 2 too low 5 
Yoast Duplicate Post 3M+ · 4.7★ (538) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #3 ↑1 2 too high 6 
Post Views Counter 100K+ · 4.9★ (1236)
wp.org #8 2 too low 7 
Custom Post Type UI 1M+ · 4.6★ (276)
wp.org #5 ↑1 2 too high 8 
Members – Membership & User Role Editor Plugin 300K+ · 4.9★ (1281)
wp.org #10 ↑3 2 too low 9 
Schedule Post Changes With PublishPress Future: Unpublish, Delete, Change Status, Trash, Change Categories 100K+ · 4.5★ (172)
wp.org #9 ↓2 10 
Rate My Post – Star Rating Plugin by FeedbackWP 20K+ · 4.7★ (159) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #7 ↑2 3 too high 11 WP Fastest Cache – WordPress Cache Plugin 1M+ · 4.9★ (4228)
wp.org #15 ↑9 4 too low 12 
The Post Grid – Shortcode, Gutenberg Blocks and Elementor Addon for Post Grid 100K+ · 4.8★ (265)
wp.org #13 ↑1 1 too low 13 
Ultimate Post Kit – Elementor Post Grid, Post Carousel, Post Slider & Blog Layout Widgets 30K+ · 4.8★ (58)
wp.org #11 ↑1 2 too high 14 
All in One SEO – AI SEO Plugin to Boost SEO Rankings & Traffic (Schema, Local SEO, Sitemap & SEO Insights) 2M+ · 4.7★ (5231) not PHP-currentheavy footprint
wp.org #14 ↓3 15 
Post Duplicator 200K+ · 4.8★ (80)
wp.org #12 ↓4 3 too high 16 
Post Type Switcher 200K+ · 4.8★ (255)
wp.org #17 1 too low 17 
Freesoul Deactivate Plugins – Disable plugins on individual WordPress pages 8K+ · 4.8★ (104)
wp.org #16 ↑1 1 too high 18 
WP Popular Posts 100K+ · 4.5★ (249)
wp.org #19 ↓9 1 too low 19 
GTM4WP – A Google Tag Manager (GTM) plugin for WordPress 700K+ · 4.5★ (155)
wp.org #18 ↓3 1 too high 20 
Smart Post – Post Grid, Post Carousel, Post Slider Gutenberg Blocks for Blog & News 20K+ · 4.7★ (210) heavy footprint
wp.org #23 ↓2 3 too low 21 
GiveWP – Donation Plugin and Fundraising Platform 100K+ · 4.6★ (708) throws errorsnot PHP-currentheavy footprint
wp.org #20 ↓4 1 too high 22 
Public Post Preview 100K+ · 4.6★ (79)
wp.org #22 ↓2 23 
Speed Optimizer – The All-In-One Performance-Boosting Plugin 1M+ · 4.2★ (641)
wp.org #24 ↓5 1 too low 24 
Duplicate Post – duplicate pages, copy content, clone posts 5K+ · 4.7★ (7) thin reviews
wp.org #21 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.