wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “registration date”
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 “registration date”, we and wp.org disagree on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 9 of the top 20. 5 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
Registration Form for WooCommerce shows at wp.org #8 but places #20 on merit, a gap of 12 places. Its 1K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 3 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
Buried gem
WPForms – AI Form Builder for WordPress – Contact Forms, Payment Forms, Survey Form, Quiz & More places #7 on merit, 4.8★ from 14387 reviews, but shows at wp.org #12. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.
User Registration & Membership – Free & Paid Memberships, Subscriptions, Content Restriction, User Profile, Custom User Registration & Login Builder 50K+ · 4.8★ (832)
wp.org #2 ↓1 1 too low 2 
Ultimate Member – User Profile, Registration, Login, Member Directory, Content Restriction & Membership Plugin 200K+ · 4.4★ (1445)
wp.org #3 1 too low 3 
Forminator Forms – Contact Form, Payment Form & Custom Form Builder 600K+ · 4.8★ (2143)
wp.org #5 ↓1 2 too low 4 
Users Registration Date – Sortable Users Column 3K+ · 5.0★ (6) thin reviews
wp.org #1 ↑1 3 too high 5 
RegistrationMagic – Custom Registration Forms, User Registration, Payment, and User Login 7K+ · 4.5★ (459)
wp.org #6 ↑2 1 too low 6 
Event Tickets and Registration 90K+ · 3.5★ (236) heavy footprint
wp.org #4 ↑1 2 too high 7 WPForms – AI Form Builder for WordPress – Contact Forms, Payment Forms, Survey Form, Quiz & More 5M+ · 4.8★ (14387)
wp.org #12 5 too low 8 
Rank Math SEO – AI SEO Tools to Dominate SEO Rankings 4M+ · 4.8★ (7519)
wp.org #13 ↑2 5 too low 9 
Registrations for the Events Calendar – Event Registration Plugin 7K+ · 5.0★ (103)
wp.org #11 2 too low 10 
Event Booking Manager for WooCommerce – Sell Tickets, Event Registration, RSVP & Event Calendar 7K+ · 4.5★ (167) throws errorsnot PHP-currentheavy footprint
wp.org #7 3 too high 11 
Complianz GDPR/CCPA Cookie Consent Banner 1M+ · 4.7★ (1668)
wp.org #15 ↑6 4 too low 12 
Eventin – Events Calendar, Tickets, Registration, Booking & WooCommerce 10K+ · 4.7★ (413) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #10 ↓1 2 too high 13 
UsersWP – Front-end login form, User Registration, User Profile & Members Directory plugin for WP 20K+ · 4.7★ (183)
wp.org #14 ↑2 1 too low 14 
Admin and Site Enhancements (ASE) 200K+ · 5.0★ (423)
wp.org #23 9 too low 15 
WP Event Manager – Events Calendar, Registrations, Sell Tickets with WooCommerce 20K+ · 4.0★ (249)
wp.org #16 ↑2 1 too low 16 
Events Manager – Calendar, Bookings, Tickets, Appointments and more! 60K+ · 4.2★ (551) not PHP-current
wp.org #17 ↓3 1 too low 17 
Event Genius – Event Calendar, Event Registration, and Attendee Management 600+ · 4.8★ (17) thin reviews
wp.org #9 ↑4 8 too high 18 
Custom Post Type UI 1M+ · 4.6★ (276)
wp.org #20 ↑2 2 too low 19 
WP Bulk Delete 90K+ · 4.6★ (131)
wp.org #24 5 too low 20 Registration Form for WooCommerce 1K+ · 5.0★ (3) thin reviews
wp.org #8 ↑2 12 too high 21 
Event Registration 100+ · 3.8★ (22) thin reviews
wp.org #22 ↑1 1 too low 22 
Advanced Datepicker – Restrict Date for Elementor Forms 900+ · 5.0★ (4) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews
wp.org #19 3 too high 23 
Custom Fields Account Registration For Woocommerce 700+ · 3.7★ (6) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews
wp.org #18 ↓1 5 too high 24 
Advanced Datepicker – Restricts Date for WPForms 300+ · 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.