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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “search engine optimisation”

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 “search engine optimisation”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 12 of the top 20. 3 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

Tabby Checkout shows at wp.org #9 but places #20 on merit, a gap of 11 places. Its 4K+ 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

ShortPixel Image Optimizer – Optimize Images, Convert WebP & AVIF places #7 on merit, 4.5★ from 830 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.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Speed Optimizer – The All-In-One Performance-Boosting Plugin 1M+ · 4.2★ (641) wp.org #1 2 Docket Cache – Object Cache Accelerator 20K+ · 4.9★ (50) wp.org #2 3 PhastPress 10K+ · 4.9★ (99) wp.org #3 4 GTM4WP – A Google Tag Manager (GTM) plugin for WordPress 700K+ · 4.5★ (155) wp.org #5 1 too low 5 Imagify Image Optimization: Optimize Images | Compress & Convert to WebP/AVIF 900K+ · 4.3★ (1656) wp.org #8 ↓1 3 too low 6 WP Go Maps – Google Map, OpenStreetMap, Leaflet Map 300K+ · 4.8★ (3055) wp.org #13 ↓5 7 too low 7 ShortPixel Image Optimizer – Optimize Images, Convert WebP & AVIF 300K+ · 4.5★ (830) wp.org #16 ↓1 9 too low 8 Text To Speech TTS Accessibility 4K+ · 4.8★ (92) wp.org #14 ↓1 6 too low 9 LWS Tools 10K+ · 5.0★ (6) wp.org #4 5 too high 10 Nexter Extension – Security, Performance, Code Snippets & Site Toolkit 10K+ · 4.7★ (13) wp.org #10 ↓1 11 Performance Optimisation — · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #7 ↓1 4 too high 12 Comments – GraphComment | AI-Moderated Comment System 400+ · 4.7★ (30) wp.org #22 ↓2 10 too low 13 LWS Optimize – All-in-One Speed Booster & Cache Tools 20K+ · 4.6★ (9) wp.org #15 ↓1 2 too low 14 AI Chatbot & Semantic Search: ChatGPT Answers From Your Content 100+ · 4.3★ (6) wp.org #11 3 too high 15 Codesala SEO Content Engine 20+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #6 ↓1 9 too high 16 PageForge – AI Programmatic SEO, Bulk Page Generator, SEO MCP & Local SEO 70+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #23 ↓2 7 too low 17 AEOmatic – AEO for AI Search: llms.txt, Schema & AI Crawler Check 20+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #17 18 AI Discovery Files – llms.txt & AI Visibility 100+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #12 6 too high 19 EZY.ai – AEO & AI SEO for ChatGPT, Claude & Gemini 100+ · 3.0★ (4) wp.org #20 ↓3 1 too low 20 Tabby Checkout 4K+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #9 ↑1 11 too high 21 TranslateRocket – Free Multilingual Translation, Unlimited Languages 90+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #18 3 too high 22 BlogWolf – AI Blog Post Generator & Auto-Pilot Content Writer 20+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #19 ↓3 3 too high 23 ProRank SEO 10+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #21 ↓3 2 too high 24 MatrixMap – Google Maps, OpenStreetMap, Store Locator & World Maps 200+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #24 ↓1

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.