wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “remove emoji scripts”
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 emoji scripts”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 12 of the top 20. 4 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
Remove layout destroying HTML-Tags shows at wp.org #14 but places #23 on merit, a gap of 9 places. Its 100+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 1 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
Buried gem
Asset CleanUp: Page Speed Booster places #9 on merit, 4.9★ from 1564 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.
Autoptimize 800K+ · 4.7★ (1428)
wp.org #2 3 
WP Fastest Cache – WordPress Cache Plugin 1M+ · 4.9★ (4228)
wp.org #3 4 
Admin and Site Enhancements (ASE) 200K+ · 5.0★ (423)
wp.org #6 2 too low 5 
Speed Optimizer – The All-In-One Performance-Boosting Plugin 1M+ · 4.2★ (641)
wp.org #4 1 too high 6 
Powered Cache – Caching and Optimization for WordPress – Easily Improve PageSpeed & Web Vitals Score 3K+ · 4.8★ (58)
wp.org #5 1 too high 7 
Disable Bloat for WordPress & WooCommerce 10K+ · 4.8★ (100)
wp.org #10 ↓1 3 too low 8 
The SEO Framework – Fast, Automated, Effortless. 200K+ · 4.9★ (380) not PHP-current
wp.org #11 ↓1 3 too low 9 Asset CleanUp: Page Speed Booster 100K+ · 4.9★ (1564) not PHP-current
wp.org #16 ↓1 7 too low 10 
WP Hide & Security Enhancer 50K+ · 4.3★ (275) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #9 ↑2 1 too high 11 
Clearfy Cache – WordPress optimization plugin, Minify HTML, CSS & JS, Defer 40K+ · 4.7★ (339)
wp.org #17 6 too low 12 
PDF Invoices & Packing Slips for WooCommerce 300K+ · 5.0★ (1865) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #15 ↑1 3 too low 13 
Emoji Settings 2K+ · 5.0★ (12) thin reviewsstale but ranked
wp.org #7 6 too high 14 
Hide My WP Ghost – Security & Firewall 100K+ · 4.5★ (373)
wp.org #21 7 too low 15 
Loco Translate 1M+ · 4.8★ (453)
wp.org #22 ↓1 7 too low 16 
Featherweight 10K+ · 4.1★ (45) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #8 8 too high 17 
FluentSnippets – High-Performance Code Snippets, Header & Footer Code, Custom CSS & PHP Code Manager 50K+ · 4.7★ (78)
wp.org #20 3 too low 18 
Unbloater 5K+ · 5.0★ (17) thin reviews
wp.org #13 5 too high 19 
WP Coder – Insert & Manage Code Snippets 10K+ · 4.9★ (32)
wp.org #18 1 too high 20 
SpeedyCache – Cache, Optimization, Performance 500K+ · 4.4★ (30) host-installed base
wp.org #12 8 too high 21 
LWS Optimize – All-in-One Speed Booster & Cache Tools 20K+ · 4.6★ (9) thin reviews
wp.org #24 ↓1 3 too low 22 
No Nonsense 1K+ · 4.5★ (6) thin reviews
wp.org #19 3 too high 23 Remove layout destroying HTML-Tags 100+ · 5.0★ (1) thin reviews
wp.org #14 9 too high 24 
PowerUp – Admin Tools (Login/Logout Redirects, Scripts & Comments Control) 100+ · 5.0★ (1) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews
wp.org #23 ↓1 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.