Plugin Pulse Beta
← Rankings

wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “routes”

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 “routes”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 13 of the top 20. 2 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

GPX Route Map shows at wp.org #2 but places #12 on merit, a gap of 10 places. Its 100+ 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

Favicon by RealFaviconGenerator places #9 on merit, 4.9★ from 802 reviews, but shows at wp.org #15. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 FluentSMTP – WP Mail SMTP Plugin with Amazon SES, SendGrid, Mailgun, Postmark, Cloudflare, toSend, Gmail and Any SMTP 700K+ · 4.8★ (410) wp.org #1 2 Easy Google Maps by Supsystic – Custom Markers, Clustering & Map Themes 20K+ · 4.6★ (251) wp.org #4 ↑4 2 too low 3 WP Store Locator 40K+ · 4.8★ (312) wp.org #6 ↓1 3 too low 4 Admin and Site Enhancements (ASE) 200K+ · 5.0★ (423) wp.org #7 ↓1 3 too low 5 Anti-Spam, Spam FireWall by CleanTalk 200K+ · 4.8★ (3220) wp.org #9 4 too low 6 WP Go Maps – Google Map, OpenStreetMap, Leaflet Map 300K+ · 4.8★ (3055) wp.org #8 ↓5 2 too low 7 Disable WP REST API 30K+ · 4.8★ (36) wp.org #5 ↑2 2 too high 8 301 Redirects – Redirect Manager 300K+ · 4.7★ (578) wp.org #11 ↑2 3 too low 9 Favicon by RealFaviconGenerator 200K+ · 4.9★ (802) wp.org #15 ↓5 6 too low 10 Route ‑ Shipping Protection 500+ · 4.3★ (24) wp.org #3 ↑1 7 too high 11 Hide My WP Ghost – Security & Firewall 100K+ · 4.5★ (373) wp.org #13 2 too low 12 GPX Route Map 100+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #2 10 too high 13 WPVibe – MCP Server for WordPress, works with Claude, ChatGPT & other AI MCP agents 100K+ · 5.0★ (195) wp.org #19 ↑5 6 too low 14 WP-PostViews 90K+ · 4.4★ (65) wp.org #12 2 too high 15 MapPress – Google Maps, OpenStreetMap & Leaflet 30K+ · 4.7★ (147) wp.org #17 ↓2 2 too low 16 Connect Contact Form 7 to Mailchimp, Brevo, MailerLite, Klaviyo, GetResponse, EmailOctopus, Campaign Monitor & Moosend 40K+ · 4.3★ (190) wp.org #20 4 too low 17 CodePeople Post Map for Google Maps 3K+ · 4.2★ (31) wp.org #10 ↑1 7 too high 18 WP-UserOnline 10K+ · 4.6★ (38) wp.org #24 ↓10 6 too low 19 WP GPX Maps 4K+ · 4.1★ (59) wp.org #21 2 too low 20 Secure MCP Server for Claude, ChatGPT, Gemini and other AI Agents 8K+ · 5.0★ (10) wp.org #16 4 too high 21 WP Maps – Google Maps, OpenStreetMap, Mapbox, Store Locator with Search, Filters & Listings 60K+ · 4.3★ (122) wp.org #23 ↓4 2 too low 22 WooReer 1K+ · 4.1★ (24) wp.org #22 ↓4 23 VenoMaps – OpenStreetMap & Privacy-Friendly Geo Maps 400+ · 4.2★ (5) wp.org #14 ↑3 9 too high 24 WP Global Site Tag 7K+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #18 ↓2 6 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.