wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “post report”
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 report”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 6 of the top 20. 5 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
MainWP Child Reports shows at wp.org #13 but places #23 on merit, a gap of 10 places. Its 100K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 4.3★ average from 6 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
Buried gem
Rank Math SEO – AI SEO Tools to Dominate SEO Rankings places #12 on merit, 4.8★ from 7519 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.
Post Types Order 600K+ · 4.5★ (296)
wp.org #1 2 
Post SMTP – Complete Email Delivery and SMTP Solution with Email Logs, Alerts, Backup SMTP & Mobile App 300K+ · 4.7★ (528)
wp.org #3 ↓1 1 too low 3 
Post Views Counter 100K+ · 4.9★ (1237)
wp.org #5 ↑2 2 too low 4 
Simple Custom Post Order 300K+ · 4.8★ (588)
wp.org #4 5 
Yoast Duplicate Post 3M+ · 4.7★ (538) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #2 ↑1 3 too high 6 
Schedule Post Changes With PublishPress Future: Unpublish, Delete, Change Status, Trash, Change Categories 100K+ · 4.5★ (172)
wp.org #6 ↓1 7 
The Post Grid – Shortcode, Gutenberg Blocks and Elementor Addon for Post Grid 100K+ · 4.8★ (265)
wp.org #9 2 too low 8 
Post Duplicator 200K+ · 4.8★ (80)
wp.org #7 ↓1 1 too high 9 
Post Type Switcher 200K+ · 4.8★ (255)
wp.org #10 1 too low 10 
Ultimate Post Kit – Elementor Post Grid, Post Carousel, Post Slider & Blog Layout Widgets 30K+ · 4.8★ (58)
wp.org #8 2 too high 11 
Smart Post – Post Grid, Post Carousel, Post Slider Gutenberg Blocks for Blog & News 20K+ · 4.7★ (210) heavy footprint
wp.org #12 1 too low 12 Rank Math SEO – AI SEO Tools to Dominate SEO Rankings 4M+ · 4.8★ (7519)
wp.org #19 ↓2 7 too low 13 
Post Grid 30K+ · 4.3★ (163)
wp.org #14 1 too low 14 
Elementor Website Builder – more than just a page builder 10M+ · 4.5★ (7322) not PHP-currentheavy footprint
wp.org #18 ↑1 4 too low 15 
Revive Social – Social Media Auto Post and Scheduling Automation Plugin 20K+ · 4.0★ (556)
wp.org #21 ↑1 6 too low 16 
Post and Page Builder by BoldGrid – Visual Drag and Drop Editor 50K+ · 4.7★ (140)
wp.org #22 ↑1 6 too low 17 
Ninjalytics: Sales Reports & Order Export for WooCommerce and EDD 6K+ · 4.4★ (57)
wp.org #15 2 too high 18 
Auto Featured Image (Auto Post Thumbnail) 40K+ · 3.8★ (119) not PHP-current
wp.org #16 ↑2 2 too high 19 
Peter's Post Notes – Admin Notes for Posts and Pages 3K+ · 4.9★ (26)
wp.org #23 ↑1 4 too low 20 
Sales Report for WooCommerce 1K+ · 4.8★ (12) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews
wp.org #11 9 too high 21 C Custom Post Type Widgets 10K+ · 4.8★ (14) thin reviews
wp.org #20 ↑1 1 too high 22 
Advanced Post Block – Display Your Posts Exactly How You Want 10K+ · 4.2★ (17) not PHP-current thin reviews
wp.org #17 ↓1 5 too high 23 MainWP Child Reports 100K+ · 4.3★ (6) host-installed base thin reviews
wp.org #13 10 too high 24 
Missed Schedule Post Publisher 6K+ · 5.0★ (3) 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.