wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “savings”
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 “savings”, we and wp.org disagree on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 11 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
AC’s Retirement Savings Calculator shows at wp.org #2 but places #22 on merit, a gap of 20 places. Its 200+ 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
EWWW Image Optimizer places #9 on merit, 4.8★ from 1842 reviews, but shows at wp.org #14. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.
W3 Total Cache 900K+ · 4.4★ (5420)
wp.org #3 ↑1 2 too low 2 
UpdraftPlus: WP Backup & Migration Plugin 4M+ · 4.8★ (8706)
wp.org #4 ↓1 2 too low 3 
TranslatePress – Translate Multilingual sites with AI Translation 400K+ · 4.7★ (1667)
wp.org #6 3 too low 4 
Loco Translate 1M+ · 4.8★ (453)
wp.org #5 1 too low 5 
WP-Optimize – Cache, Compress images, Minify & Clean database to boost page speed & performance 1M+ · 4.8★ (2617)
wp.org #7 ↑1 2 too low 6 
Akismet Anti-spam: Spam Protection 5M+ · 4.7★ (1187)
wp.org #8 ↓1 2 too low 7 
Simple Custom Post Order 300K+ · 4.8★ (588)
wp.org #10 3 too low 8 
Elementor Website Builder – more than just a page builder 10M+ · 4.5★ (7322) not PHP-currentheavy footprint
wp.org #9 1 too low 9 EWWW Image Optimizer 1M+ · 4.8★ (1842)
wp.org #14 ↓1 5 too low 10 
Duplicate Page 3M+ · 4.8★ (466)
wp.org #13 ↓1 3 too low 11 
Quick Featured Images 50K+ · 4.7★ (235)
wp.org #15 4 too low 12 
Better Search Replace 1M+ · 4.3★ (546)
wp.org #12 ↓1 13 
WPCode – Insert Headers and Footers + Custom Code Snippets – WordPress Code Manager 3M+ · 4.9★ (1916)
wp.org #18 ↑1 5 too low 14 
Fonts Plugin | Google Fonts, Adobe Fonts & Upload Fonts 200K+ · 5.0★ (1221) heavy footprint
wp.org #19 ↓1 5 too low 15 
Htaccess File Editor – Safely Edit Htaccess File 40K+ · 5.0★ (102)
wp.org #16 1 too low 16 
WP-Members Membership Plugin 50K+ · 4.6★ (272)
wp.org #22 6 too low 17 
Imsanity 200K+ · 4.9★ (291)
wp.org #24 ↓1 7 too low 18 
AC’s Savings Calculator 200+ · 5.0★ (1) thin reviews
wp.org #1 17 too high 19 
Backuply – Backup, Restore, Migrate and Clone 600K+ · 4.5★ (135)
wp.org #21 2 too low 20 
Statify 100K+ · 4.8★ (51)
wp.org #23 ↓3 3 too low 21 
Print Invoice & Delivery Notes for WooCommerce 30K+ · 4.4★ (140) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #20 ↓6 1 too high 22 AC’s Retirement Savings Calculator 200+ · 5.0★ (1) thin reviews
wp.org #2 20 too high 23 
GDPR Tools: comment ip removement 2K+ · 5.0★ (3) thin reviews
wp.org #11 12 too high 24 
ShopMagic Abandoned Cart Recovery for WooCommerce 2K+ · 5.0★ (4) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews
wp.org #17 7 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.