wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “post text”
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 text”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 6 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.
Ranked above its merit
Animated Text Block – Add Typing and Looping Text Effects shows at wp.org #12 but places #19 on merit, a gap of 7 places. Its 4K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 4.8★ average from 5 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
Buried gem
Folders – Unlimited Folders to Organize Media Library Folder, Pages, Posts, File Manager places #11 on merit, 5.0★ from 1525 reviews, but shows at wp.org #23. 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 
Simple Custom Post Order 300K+ · 4.8★ (587)
wp.org #3 1 too low 3 
Yoast Duplicate Post 3M+ · 4.7★ (538) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #2 1 too high 4 
Image Alt Text 10K+ · 5.0★ (56)
wp.org #4 5 
The Post Grid – Shortcode, Gutenberg Blocks and Elementor Addon for Post Grid 100K+ · 4.8★ (265)
wp.org #6 1 too low 6 
Ultimate Post Kit – Elementor Post Grid, Post Carousel, Post Slider & Blog Layout Widgets 30K+ · 4.8★ (58)
wp.org #5 1 too high 7 
Elementor Website Builder – more than just a page builder 10M+ · 4.5★ (7323) not PHP-currentheavy footprint
wp.org #7 8 
Text To Speech TTS Accessibility 4K+ · 4.8★ (92)
wp.org #9 ↓1 1 too low 9 
Smart Post – Post Grid, Post Carousel, Post Slider Gutenberg Blocks for Blog & News 20K+ · 4.7★ (210) heavy footprint
wp.org #11 ↓1 2 too low 10 
Rate My Post – Star Rating Plugin by FeedbackWP 20K+ · 4.7★ (159) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #8 ↑3 2 too high 11 Folders – Unlimited Folders to Organize Media Library Folder, Pages, Posts, File Manager 90K+ · 5.0★ (1525)
wp.org #23 12 too low 12 
Post Grid 30K+ · 4.3★ (163)
wp.org #16 4 too low 13 
DTX – Dynamic Text Extension for Contact Form 7 100K+ · 4.7★ (99) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #13 ↓1 14 
Auto Featured Image (Auto Post Thumbnail) 40K+ · 3.8★ (119) not PHP-current
wp.org #14 15 
Post Slider and Post Carousel with Post Vertical Scrolling Widget – A Responsive Post Slider 10K+ · 4.7★ (31)
wp.org #20 ↓1 5 too low 16 
Duplicate Post – duplicate pages, copy content, clone posts 5K+ · 4.7★ (7) thin reviews
wp.org #10 6 too high 17 
Auto Alt Text 4K+ · 5.0★ (8) thin reviews
wp.org #15 ↓2 2 too high 18 
Alt Text Tools 800+ · 5.0★ (10) thin reviews
wp.org #19 ↓4 1 too low 19 Animated Text Block – Add Typing and Looping Text Effects 4K+ · 4.8★ (5) thin reviews
wp.org #12 ↑11 7 too high 20 
ResponsiveVoice Text To Speech 7K+ · 3.9★ (34)
wp.org #22 ↓2 2 too low 21 
AI Alt Text Generator 2K+ · 4.9★ (7) thin reviews
wp.org #17 ↓8 4 too high 22 
Duplicate Page and Post 70K+ · 4.6★ (29) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #21 ↓3 1 too high 23 
Paste As Plain Text By Default 2K+ · 5.0★ (9) thin reviews
wp.org #24 ↓3 1 too low 24 
Marquee Running Text 5K+ · 4.6★ (5) thin reviews
wp.org #18 ↓4 6 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.