wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “reading level”
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 “reading level”, we and wp.org disagree on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 5 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
Joli Table Of Contents – Table of Contents with Gutenberg Block & Shortcode shows at wp.org #10 but places #15 on merit, a gap of 5 places. Its 7K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 4.9★ average from 43 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
Jetpack – AI Agents & MCP, Security, Backup & Analytics 3M+ · 3.7★ (2408)
wp.org #2 ↓1 1 too low 2 
The Events Calendar 600K+ · 4.2★ (2461)
wp.org #3 1 too low 3 B Book Review Library 200+ · 4.8★ (16) thin reviews
wp.org #1 ↑1 2 too high 4 
Essential Addons for Elementor – Popular Elementor Templates & Widgets 1M+ · 4.9★ (4132)
wp.org #5 ↑1 1 too low 5 
Table of Contents Plus – Automatic Table of Contents for Posts & Pages 200K+ · 4.5★ (187)
wp.org #4 1 too high 6 
Translate WordPress with GTranslate 900K+ · 4.9★ (4962)
wp.org #7 1 too low 7 
Advanced Custom Fields (ACF®) 2M+ · 4.5★ (1440)
wp.org #6 ↑4 1 too high 8 
DearFlip – PDF Flipbook, 3D Flipbook, PDF embed, PDF viewer 200K+ · 4.9★ (194)
wp.org #8 ↓3 9 
Variation Swatches for WooCommerce 300K+ · 4.8★ (926)
wp.org #11 ↑3 2 too low 10 
Equalize Digital Accessibility Checker – WCAG, ADA, EAA and Section 508 compliance 10K+ · 4.9★ (80)
wp.org #9 ↓1 1 too high 11 
All-in-One WP Migration and Backup 5M+ · 4.5★ (7676)
wp.org #14 ↑2 3 too low 12 
Visitor Traffic Real Time Statistics 30K+ · 4.1★ (233)
wp.org #12 13 
UserFeedback – Create Interactive Feedback Form, User Surveys, and Polls in Seconds 200K+ · 4.8★ (309)
wp.org #15 2 too low 14 U Unique Headers 10K+ · 4.9★ (160)
wp.org #16 ↑1 2 too low 15 Joli Table Of Contents – Table of Contents with Gutenberg Block & Shortcode 7K+ · 4.9★ (43)
wp.org #10 ↓1 5 too high 16 
3D FlipBook – PDF Embedder, PDF Flipbook Viewer, Flipbook Image Gallery 70K+ · 4.8★ (182)
wp.org #18 ↑1 2 too low 17 
RSS Aggregator by Feedzy – Feed to Post, Autoblogging, News & YouTube Video Feeds Aggregator 40K+ · 4.6★ (361)
wp.org #21 ↑1 4 too low 18 
Clicky Analytics 10K+ · 4.5★ (25)
wp.org #13 5 too high 19 
PixelYourSite – Your smart PIXEL (TAG) & API Manager 400K+ · 4.3★ (281)
wp.org #24 5 too low 20 
GS Books Showcase – Display Books in Grid, Slider & More | Library for WordPress 500+ · 4.8★ (42)
wp.org #17 ↑1 3 too high 21 
Restricted Site Access 10K+ · 4.8★ (62)
wp.org #23 ↑1 2 too low 22 
ExactMetrics – Google Analytics Dashboard for WordPress (Website Stats Plugin) 200K+ · 2.5★ (1546)
wp.org #20 ↑1 2 too high 23 
Catch Scroll Progress Bar 1K+ · 4.0★ (4) thin reviews
wp.org #19 ↑1 4 too high 24 
WZ Followed Posts – Display what visitors are reading 300+ · 3.0★ (2) thin reviews
wp.org #22 ↑1 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.