wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “request development work”
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 “request development work”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 9 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
HTTP Requests Manager shows at wp.org #6 but places #22 on merit, a gap of 16 places. Its 1K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 8 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
Buried gem
Ad Inserter – Ad Manager & AdSense Ads places #11 on merit, 4.9★ from 2433 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.
WooCommerce 7M+ · 4.5★ (4833)
wp.org #1 2 
Really Simple Security – Simple and Performant Security (formerly Really Simple SSL) 3M+ · 4.9★ (8869)
wp.org #2 3 
WP STAGING – Backups & Restore, Migration & Clone Plugin – Cloud Backups, Scheduled Backups 100K+ · 4.8★ (2470)
wp.org #4 1 too low 4 
Complianz GDPR/CCPA Cookie Consent Banner 1M+ · 4.7★ (1667)
wp.org #5 1 too low 5 
Theme Switcha – Easily Switch Themes for Development and Testing 7K+ · 4.4★ (63)
wp.org #3 2 too high 6 
Members – Membership & User Role Editor Plugin 300K+ · 4.9★ (1281)
wp.org #8 2 too low 7 
Ultimate Member – User Profile, Registration, Login, Member Directory, Content Restriction & Membership Plugin 200K+ · 4.4★ (1445)
wp.org #10 3 too low 8 
Spectra Legacy – Gutenberg Blocks 1M+ · 4.7★ (1872)
wp.org #11 3 too low 9 
SVG Support 1M+ · 4.8★ (356)
wp.org #9 10 
Menu Icons by Themeisle – Add Icons to Navigation Menus 100K+ · 4.9★ (851)
wp.org #15 5 too low 11 Ad Inserter – Ad Manager & AdSense Ads 300K+ · 4.9★ (2433)
wp.org #17 6 too low 12 
Request a Quote for WooCommerce – Get a Quote Button 6K+ · 5.0★ (25)
wp.org #7 5 too high 13 
WP Super Cache 1M+ · 4.3★ (1346)
wp.org #13 14 
WP Rollback – Rollback Plugins and Themes 200K+ · 4.9★ (215)
wp.org #16 2 too low 15 
AI Engine – MCP Server & AI Chatbot for WordPress, with Claude, ChatGPT & Gemini 90K+ · 4.9★ (874)
wp.org #22 7 too low 16 
Docket Cache – Object Cache Accelerator 20K+ · 4.9★ (50)
wp.org #12 4 too high 17 
BBQ Firewall – Fast & Powerful Firewall Security 100K+ · 4.9★ (160)
wp.org #19 2 too low 18 
WP Fastest Cache – WordPress Cache Plugin 1M+ · 4.9★ (4229)
wp.org #24 6 too low 19 
WP Maps – Google Maps, OpenStreetMap, Mapbox, Store Locator with Search, Filters & Listings 60K+ · 4.3★ (122)
wp.org #14 5 too high 20 
LightStart – Maintenance Mode, Coming Soon and Landing Page Builder 400K+ · 4.3★ (874)
wp.org #21 1 too low 21 
Simple CAPTCHA with Cloudflare Turnstile 200K+ · 4.7★ (262)
wp.org #20 1 too high 22 HTTP Requests Manager 1K+ · 5.0★ (8) thin reviews
wp.org #6 16 too high 23 
Redux Framework 900K+ · 4.4★ (273)
wp.org #18 5 too high 24 B BuddyPress Extended Friendship Request 200+ · 4.8★ (10) 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.