wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “previous posts”
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 “previous posts”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 9 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
Magical Posts Display – Elementor Advanced Posts widgets shows at wp.org #9 but places #22 on merit, a gap of 13 places. Its 3K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 4.4★ average from 10 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
Buried gem
Post SMTP – Complete Email Delivery and SMTP Solution with Email Logs, Alerts, Backup SMTP & Mobile App places #10 on merit, 4.7★ from 528 reviews, but shows at wp.org #16. 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 #2 3 
List category posts 80K+ · 4.7★ (254)
wp.org #3 4 
Post Views Counter 100K+ · 4.9★ (1236)
wp.org #5 ↑9 1 too low 5 
Folders – Unlimited Folders to Organize Media Library Folder, Pages, Posts, File Manager 90K+ · 5.0★ (1525)
wp.org #6 ↓1 1 too low 6 
Elementor Website Builder – more than just a page builder 10M+ · 4.5★ (7323) not PHP-currentheavy footprint
wp.org #7 ↑1 1 too low 7 
Hide Posts 20K+ · 4.7★ (22) thin reviews
wp.org #4 3 too high 8 
Classic Editor 8M+ · 4.9★ (1251)
wp.org #13 5 too low 9 
GenerateBlocks 200K+ · 4.9★ (122)
wp.org #11 ↑1 2 too low 10 Post SMTP – Complete Email Delivery and SMTP Solution with Email Logs, Alerts, Backup SMTP & Mobile App 300K+ · 4.7★ (528)
wp.org #16 ↓5 6 too low 11 
Table of Contents Plus – Automatic Table of Contents for Posts & Pages 200K+ · 4.5★ (187)
wp.org #15 ↑5 4 too low 12 
Dynamic Month & Year into Posts 8K+ · 5.0★ (18) thin reviews
wp.org #8 ↓2 4 too high 13 
Code Snippets 1M+ · 4.7★ (510) not PHP-current
wp.org #12 ↓5 1 too high 14 
Ultimate Post Kit – Elementor Post Grid, Post Carousel, Post Slider & Blog Layout Widgets 30K+ · 4.8★ (58)
wp.org #14 ↑1 15 
Bulk remove posts from category 10K+ · 4.6★ (100)
wp.org #17 2 too low 16 
WP Sitemap Page 200K+ · 4.8★ (205)
wp.org #21 ↓2 5 too low 17 
Loco Translate 1M+ · 4.8★ (453)
wp.org #20 ↓2 3 too low 18 
bbPress 100K+ · 3.9★ (343)
wp.org #18 ↓2 19 
Post Type Switcher 200K+ · 4.8★ (255)
wp.org #23 ↓1 4 too low 20 
Post Grid 30K+ · 4.3★ (163)
wp.org #24 ↓1 4 too low 21 
Mark Posts 1K+ · 4.8★ (10) thin reviews
wp.org #10 11 too high 22 Magical Posts Display – Elementor Advanced Posts widgets 3K+ · 4.4★ (10) thin reviews
wp.org #9 13 too high 23 
CCI Posts Carousel All In One 2K+ · 4.6★ (27)
wp.org #19 4 too high 24 
Floating Social Share Icons and Social Share buttons – Next Previous Post Links – FL 200+ · 4.7★ (73) throws errorsnot PHP-current
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.