wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “post review”
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 review”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 3 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
WP Ultimate Review shows at wp.org #5 but places #21 on merit, a gap of 16 places. Its 60K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 3.4★ average from 17 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
Buried gem
The Post Grid – Shortcode, Gutenberg Blocks and Elementor Addon for Post Grid places #9 on merit, 4.8★ from 265 reviews, but shows at wp.org #14. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.
Widgets for Google Reviews 1M+ · 4.9★ (2667)
wp.org #1 2 
Customer Reviews for WooCommerce 80K+ · 4.8★ (1539)
wp.org #3 ↓1 1 too low 3 
Post Types Order 600K+ · 4.5★ (296)
wp.org #2 ↓1 1 too high 4 
Post SMTP – Complete Email Delivery and SMTP Solution with Email Logs, Alerts, Backup SMTP & Mobile App 300K+ · 4.7★ (528)
wp.org #4 ↓1 5 
Rich Showcase for Google Reviews 100K+ · 4.9★ (1623)
wp.org #7 2 too low 6 
Simple Custom Post Order 300K+ · 4.8★ (587)
wp.org #6 7 
Site Reviews 60K+ · 4.9★ (376)
wp.org #8 ↓3 1 too low 8 
WP Google Review Slider 30K+ · 4.9★ (373) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #9 1 too low 9 The Post Grid – Shortcode, Gutenberg Blocks and Elementor Addon for Post Grid 100K+ · 4.8★ (265)
wp.org #14 ↓2 5 too low 10 
Post Duplicator 200K+ · 4.8★ (80)
wp.org #11 ↓1 1 too low 11 
Reviews and Rating – Google Reviews 20K+ · 4.9★ (184) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #10 ↓2 1 too high 12 
Ultimate Post Kit – Elementor Post Grid, Post Carousel, Post Slider & Blog Layout Widgets 30K+ · 4.8★ (58)
wp.org #12 ↓1 13 
Elementor Website Builder – more than just a page builder 10M+ · 4.5★ (7323) not PHP-currentheavy footprint
wp.org #15 ↓2 2 too low 14 
Rank Math SEO – AI SEO Tools to Dominate SEO Rankings 4M+ · 4.8★ (7519)
wp.org #24 ↓1 10 too low 15 
Smart Post – Post Grid, Post Carousel, Post Slider Gutenberg Blocks for Blog & News 20K+ · 4.7★ (210) heavy footprint
wp.org #16 ↑1 1 too low 16 
Widgets for Airbnb Reviews 6K+ · 4.6★ (60)
wp.org #13 ↑7 3 too high 17 
WP TripAdvisor Review Slider 8K+ · 4.8★ (135)
wp.org #19 2 too low 18 
WP Tripadvisor Review Widgets 20K+ · 4.1★ (116)
wp.org #17 ↓3 1 too high 19 
Widgets for Booking.com Reviews 9K+ · 4.9★ (65)
wp.org #18 ↓3 1 too high 20 
Jetpack – AI Agents & MCP, Security, Backup & Analytics 3M+ · 3.7★ (2408)
wp.org #20 21 WP Ultimate Review 60K+ · 3.4★ (17) thin reviewslow rating, top placement
wp.org #5 ↓1 16 too high 22 
Duplicate Page and Post 70K+ · 4.6★ (29) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #21 1 too high 23 
WP Post Page Clone 70K+ · 4.5★ (8) thin reviews
wp.org #23 ↑1 24 
Business Reviews – build trust with real customer feedback 1K+ · 5.0★ (1) thin reviews
wp.org #22 2 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.