wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “post summary”
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 summary”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 11 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
Post Export Import with Media shows at wp.org #9 but places #21 on merit, a gap of 12 places. Its 1K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 4.5★ average from 8 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
Buried gem
WP Mail SMTP by WPForms – SMTP for Reliable Email Delivery with Gmail, Outlook, Amazon SES, Brevo, Other SMTP & More places #10 on merit, 4.8★ from 5209 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.
Post SMTP – Complete Email Delivery and SMTP Solution with Email Logs, Alerts, Backup SMTP & Mobile App 300K+ · 4.7★ (528)
wp.org #1 2 
Post Views Counter 100K+ · 4.9★ (1237)
wp.org #2 ↑2 3 
Yoast SEO – Advanced SEO with real-time guidance and built-in AI 10M+ · 4.8★ (27821)
wp.org #5 2 too low 4 
Elementor Website Builder – more than just a page builder 10M+ · 4.5★ (7322) not PHP-currentheavy footprint
wp.org #3 ↓1 1 too high 5 
Ultimate Post Kit – Elementor Post Grid, Post Carousel, Post Slider & Blog Layout Widgets 30K+ · 4.8★ (58)
wp.org #4 ↓1 1 too high 6 
Table of Contents Plus – Automatic Table of Contents for Posts & Pages 200K+ · 4.5★ (187)
wp.org #6 7 
Fluent Forms – Customizable Contact Forms, Survey, Quiz, & Conversational Form Builder 800K+ · 4.8★ (807)
wp.org #8 1 too low 8 
Widgets for Google Reviews 1M+ · 4.9★ (2667)
wp.org #11 3 too low 9 
PDF Invoices & Packing Slips for WooCommerce 300K+ · 5.0★ (1865) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #12 ↓3 3 too low 10 WP Mail SMTP by WPForms – SMTP for Reliable Email Delivery with Gmail, Outlook, Amazon SES, Brevo, Other SMTP & More 4M+ · 4.8★ (5209)
wp.org #18 ↓3 8 too low 11 
Wordfence Security – Firewall, Malware Scan, and Login Security 5M+ · 4.7★ (5039) heavy footprint
wp.org #15 ↓1 4 too low 12 
Jetpack – AI Agents & MCP, Security, Backup & Analytics 3M+ · 3.7★ (2408)
wp.org #13 ↑6 1 too low 13 
Share Buttons & AI-powered Summaries 1K+ · 5.0★ (16) thin reviews
wp.org #7 6 too high 14 
WP RSS Aggregator – RSS Import, Feed to Post, Autoblogging, AI Content 40K+ · 4.5★ (565)
wp.org #19 ↓6 5 too low 15 
Delete Duplicate Posts 10K+ · 4.8★ (153)
wp.org #16 1 too low 16 
Admin and Site Enhancements (ASE) 200K+ · 5.0★ (423)
wp.org #21 ↓1 5 too low 17 
RSS Aggregator by Feedzy – Feed to Post, Autoblogging, News & YouTube Video Feeds Aggregator 40K+ · 4.6★ (361)
wp.org #20 ↓2 3 too low 18 
Simple History – Track, Log, and Audit WordPress Changes 300K+ · 4.9★ (491)
wp.org #22 ↓1 4 too low 19 
Ultra Addons for Contact Form 7 60K+ · 4.8★ (107)
wp.org #24 ↓1 5 too low 20 
Click to Chat – HoliThemes 600K+ · 4.8★ (131)
wp.org #23 ↑1 3 too low 21 Post Export Import with Media 1K+ · 4.5★ (8) thin reviews
wp.org #9 ↑2 12 too high 22 
Magical Posts Display – Elementor Advanced Posts widgets 3K+ · 4.4★ (10) thin reviews
wp.org #10 12 too high 23 
WPSummarize – AI Summaries with key takeaways for your posts 90+ · 5.0★ (6) thin reviews
wp.org #14 ↓2 9 too high 24 
Fancy Post Grid – Ultimate Post Grid Builder 300+ · 5.0★ (2) not PHP-current thin reviews
wp.org #17 7 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.