wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “remove dns”
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 “remove dns”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 14 of the top 20. 1 plugin is 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 the install base is organic or host-pushed, and its risk of being pulled.
Ranked above its merit
TGG – WP Optimizer shows at wp.org #7 but places #23 on merit, a gap of 16 places. Its 700+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 2 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
Buried gem
Anti-Spam, Spam FireWall by CleanTalk places #8 on merit, 4.8★ from 3221 reviews, but shows at wp.org #17. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.
LiteSpeed Cache 7M+ · 4.8★ (2778)
wp.org #1 2 
WP Mail SMTP by WPForms – SMTP for Reliable Email Delivery with Gmail, Outlook, Amazon SES, Brevo, Other SMTP & More 4M+ · 4.8★ (5209)
wp.org #4 2 too low 3 D Disable Emojis (GDPR friendly) 60K+ · 5.0★ (108)
wp.org #3 ↑2 4 
Speed Optimizer – The All-In-One Performance-Boosting Plugin 1M+ · 4.2★ (641)
wp.org #5 ↓2 1 too low 5 
WP Hide & Security Enhancer 50K+ · 4.3★ (275)
wp.org #8 ↑1 3 too low 6 
OMGF | GDPR/DSGVO Compliant, Faster Google Fonts. Easy. 300K+ · 4.7★ (213)
wp.org #9 ↓1 3 too low 7 
WP Remove Query Strings From Static Resources 3K+ · 5.0★ (5) thin reviews
wp.org #2 5 too high 8 Anti-Spam, Spam FireWall by CleanTalk 200K+ · 4.8★ (3221)
wp.org #17 ↓2 9 too low 9 
Disable Bloat for WordPress & WooCommerce 10K+ · 4.8★ (100)
wp.org #10 ↑1 1 too low 10 
W3 Total Cache 900K+ · 4.4★ (5420)
wp.org #15 ↑1 5 too low 11 
Unbloater 5K+ · 5.0★ (17) thin reviews
wp.org #6 5 too high 12 
Post SMTP – Complete Email Delivery and SMTP Solution with Email Logs, Alerts, Backup SMTP & Mobile App 300K+ · 4.7★ (528)
wp.org #16 ↓3 4 too low 13 
WP Encryption: Easy HTTPS / SSL & Free SSL certificate, HTTPS redirect 50K+ · 4.9★ (1146)
wp.org #24 11 too low 14 
Clearfy Cache – WordPress optimization plugin, Minify HTML, CSS & JS, Defer 40K+ · 4.7★ (339)
wp.org #19 ↓1 5 too low 15 
Autoptimize 800K+ · 4.7★ (1428)
wp.org #20 5 too low 16 
Powered Cache – Caching and Optimization for WordPress – Easily Improve PageSpeed & Web Vitals Score 3K+ · 4.8★ (58)
wp.org #12 ↑5 4 too high 17 
Breeze Cache 300K+ · 3.6★ (133)
wp.org #11 ↓1 6 too high 18 
Featherweight 10K+ · 4.1★ (45)
wp.org #14 4 too high 19 
Vigilant – 100% Free Security Suite: Firewall, 2FA, Login, Headers, Scanner… 3K+ · 5.0★ (24) thin reviews
wp.org #18 ↑1 1 too high 20 
HTTP Headers 40K+ · 4.3★ (70)
wp.org #22 ↓1 2 too low 21 
Advanced IP Blocker 3K+ · 4.9★ (27)
wp.org #21 ↑2 22 
SpeedyCache – Cache, Optimization, Performance 500K+ · 4.4★ (30) host-installed base
wp.org #13 ↓1 9 too high 23 T TGG – WP Optimizer 700+ · 5.0★ (2) thin reviews
wp.org #7 16 too high 24 
Embed Optimizer 50K+ · 3.0★ (2) thin reviews
wp.org #23 1 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.