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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “secured wordpress”

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 “secured wordpress”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 10 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

Secured WP shows at wp.org #9 but places #23 on merit, a gap of 14 places. Its — 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

Feed Them Social – Social Media Feeds, Video, and Photo Galleries places #10 on merit, 4.7★ from 639 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.

merit plugin wp.org
1 WP Umbrella: Security Backup Restore & Monitoring 90K+ · 4.8★ (81) wp.org #1 2 Translate WordPress – Google Language Translator 100K+ · 4.7★ (620) wp.org #2 3 Auto-Install Free SSL – Generate & Install Free SSL Certificates 8K+ · 4.9★ (405) wp.org #6 3 too low 4 Zero Spam for WordPress 20K+ · 4.1★ (143) wp.org #4 5 Mailgun for WordPress 80K+ · 3.8★ (49) wp.org #3 2 too high 6 miniOrange 2FA – Two Factor Authentication for WordPress (Passkey, OTP, SMS, Email, Google Authenticator) 10K+ · 4.5★ (385) wp.org #8 2 too low 7 Edwiser Bridge – WordPress Moodle Integration 4K+ · 4.5★ (82) wp.org #5 2 too high 8 Maps Plugin using Google Maps for WordPress – WP Google Map 10K+ · 4.8★ (172) wp.org #11 ↓1 3 too low 9 weForms – Easy Drag & Drop Contact Form Builder For WordPress 10K+ · 4.5★ (111) wp.org #10 ↓1 1 too low 10 Feed Them Social – Social Media Feeds, Video, and Photo Galleries 20K+ · 4.7★ (639) wp.org #17 ↓3 7 too low 11 Search Atlas SEO – OTTO AI SEO Automation for WordPress 7K+ · 3.3★ (24) wp.org #7 4 too high 12 JobWP – Job Board Plugin for WordPress | Job Listings, Career Page & Applications 1K+ · 5.0★ (21) wp.org #13 ↑2 1 too low 13 Atarim – AI Agency for WordPress: Edit Pages, Fix Code, Update Plugins, SEO & Client Feedback 1K+ · 4.9★ (126) wp.org #24 ↓1 11 too low 14 Super Web Share – Native Social Sharing Button 2K+ · 4.9★ (29) wp.org #20 ↓1 6 too low 15 Code Engine – PHP Snippets, AI Functions & Automation for WordPress 800+ · 5.0★ (9) wp.org #12 ↓1 3 too high 16 WP Free SSL 1K+ · 4.7★ (23) wp.org #18 ↓5 2 too low 17 Ultimate Multisite – WordPress Multisite SaaS & WaaS Platform 100+ · 5.0★ (11) wp.org #16 1 too high 18 Download After Email – Subscribe & Download Form Plugin 7K+ · 4.4★ (30) wp.org #22 ↓2 4 too low 19 Security Header Generator 400+ · 4.9★ (7) wp.org #14 ↓2 5 too high 20 WP Top News — Build a Complete News Portal in WordPress 800+ · 5.0★ (7) wp.org #15 5 too high 21 exovia GDPR Google Maps 4K+ · 4.6★ (11) wp.org #23 ↓2 2 too low 22 BeyondSEO – AI SEO to Improve Rankings, Listings & Online Visibility 20K+ · 4.0★ (4) wp.org #21 1 too high 23 Secured WP — · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #9 ↓1 14 too high 24 Improve Website Security 40+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #19 ↓1 5 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.