wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “post visits”
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 visits”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 8 of the top 20.
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 the install base is organic or host-pushed, and its risk of being pulled.
Ranked above its merit
Page Visits Counter – Lite shows at wp.org #2 but places #10 on merit, a gap of 8 places. Its 5K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 4.0★ average from 7 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
Buried gem
TablePress – Tables in WordPress made easy places #9 on merit, 5.0★ from 4625 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.
Post Types Order 600K+ · 4.5★ (296)
wp.org #1 2 
Post Views Counter 100K+ · 4.9★ (1237)
wp.org #5 ↑1 3 too low 3 
Post SMTP – Complete Email Delivery and SMTP Solution with Email Logs, Alerts, Backup SMTP & Mobile App 300K+ · 4.7★ (528)
wp.org #4 ↓1 1 too low 4 
Custom Post Type UI 1M+ · 4.6★ (276)
wp.org #3 ↑2 1 too high 5 
Simple Custom Post Order 300K+ · 4.8★ (588)
wp.org #6 ↓2 1 too low 6 
Wordfence Security – Firewall, Malware Scan, and Login Security 5M+ · 4.7★ (5039)
wp.org #7 1 too low 7 
Duplicate Post 300K+ · 4.9★ (1623)
wp.org #10 ↓1 3 too low 8 
Smart Post – Post Grid, Post Carousel, Post Slider Gutenberg Blocks for Blog & News 20K+ · 4.7★ (210)
wp.org #8 9 TablePress – Tables in WordPress made easy 600K+ · 5.0★ (4625)
wp.org #14 5 too low 10 Page Visits Counter – Lite 5K+ · 4.0★ (7) thin reviews
wp.org #2 8 too high 11 
Post and Page Builder by BoldGrid – Visual Drag and Drop Editor 50K+ · 4.7★ (140)
wp.org #13 ↓1 2 too low 12 
Jetpack – AI Agents & MCP, Security, Backup & Analytics 3M+ · 3.7★ (2408)
wp.org #11 ↑9 1 too high 13 
WooCommerce 7M+ · 4.5★ (4833)
wp.org #19 ↓2 6 too low 14 
Display Post Types – Post Grid, post list and post sliders 8K+ · 5.0★ (26)
wp.org #9 ↑1 5 too high 15 
Hide Page And Post Title 40K+ · 3.6★ (54)
wp.org #12 ↓1 3 too high 16 
Post Pay Counter 1K+ · 4.8★ (46)
wp.org #16 ↓1 17 
Peter's Post Notes – Admin Notes for Posts and Pages 3K+ · 4.9★ (26)
wp.org #17 ↑1 18 
Gravity Forms + Custom Post Types 10K+ · 4.4★ (46)
wp.org #22 ↑1 4 too low 19 
Post Carousel Divi 2K+ · 4.9★ (12) thin reviews
wp.org #20 ↑1 1 too low 20 
Wp Post Views – WordPress Post views counter 4K+ · 4.4★ (7) thin reviews
wp.org #18 ↑1 2 too high 21 
Auto Delete Post – Ultimate plugin for deleting a post automatically 300+ · 5.0★ (7) thin reviews
wp.org #23 ↑1 2 too low 22 
Missed Schedule Post Publisher 6K+ · 5.0★ (3) thin reviews
wp.org #15 ↓2 7 too high 23 
Post Layouts 900+ · 4.5★ (4) thin reviews
wp.org #24 1 too low 24 
Auto Update Post Date 2K+ · 5.0★ (2) thin reviews
wp.org #21 ↑1 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.