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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “seo tools”

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 “seo tools”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 9 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

Ubersuggest SEO Tools shows at wp.org #5 but places #17 on merit, a gap of 12 places. Its 1K+ 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

SmartCrawl SEO checker, analyzer & optimizer places #10 on merit, 4.8★ from 171 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 Rank Math SEO – AI SEO Tools to Dominate SEO Rankings 4M+ · 4.8★ (7519) wp.org #1 2 Yoast SEO – Advanced SEO with real-time guidance and built-in AI 10M+ · 4.8★ (27821) wp.org #2 3 All in One SEO – AI SEO Plugin to Boost SEO Rankings & Traffic (Schema, Local SEO, Sitemap & SEO Insights) 2M+ · 4.7★ (5231) wp.org #3 4 Jetpack – AI Agents & MCP, Security, Backup & Analytics 3M+ · 3.7★ (2408) wp.org #4 ↑5 5 GEO Plugin by Squirrly SEO 30K+ · 4.6★ (683) wp.org #8 ↓3 3 too low 6 SEOPress – AI SEO Plugin & On-site SEO 300K+ · 4.8★ (1267) wp.org #9 ↓1 3 too low 7 Slim SEO – AI SEO Plugin, Lightweight, Fast & Automated 70K+ · 4.7★ (136) wp.org #7 8 Wordfence Security – Firewall, Malware Scan, and Login Security 5M+ · 4.7★ (5038) wp.org #11 ↓1 3 too low 9 The SEO Framework – Fast, Automated, Effortless. 200K+ · 4.9★ (380) wp.org #10 ↑4 1 too low 10 SmartCrawl SEO checker, analyzer & optimizer 10K+ · 4.8★ (171) wp.org #15 ↓2 5 too low 11 WooCommerce 7M+ · 4.5★ (4833) wp.org #13 ↓2 2 too low 12 SEO Engine – Smart SEO with AI, Schema & Redirection for WordPress 1K+ · 4.9★ (48) wp.org #18 ↑2 6 too low 13 ThinkRank SEO – AI SEO Plugin for SEO & Google Search Console 20K+ · 4.9★ (36) wp.org #12 ↑7 1 too high 14 Xagio SEO & AEO – AI SEO for Google Rankings & AI Visibility 10K+ · 4.9★ (51) wp.org #14 ↓2 15 Simple SEO 10K+ · 4.7★ (33) wp.org #20 ↓3 5 too low 16 Hostinger Tools 3M+ · 3.5★ (40) wp.org #6 10 too high 17 Ubersuggest SEO Tools 1K+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #5 ↓1 12 too high 18 SEO SIMPLE PACK 100K+ · 4.6★ (14) wp.org #16 ↓1 2 too high 19 Easy MCP AI – Connect Claude to WordPress: MCP Server for ChatGPT & AI Agents 30K+ · 4.9★ (16) wp.org #23 4 too low 20 Media Library Tools – AI-Powered Rename, Clean & CSV Import/Export 2K+ · 4.7★ (14) wp.org #24 4 too low 21 SMNTCS Google Webmaster Tools 6K+ · 5.0★ (5) wp.org #19 ↓1 2 too high 22 Catch Web Tools 10K+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #17 ↓1 5 too high 23 SiteSEO – SEO Simplified 400K+ · 4.0★ (8) wp.org #21 2 too high 24 BoldGrid Easy SEO – Simple and Effective SEO 40K+ · 3.0★ (3) wp.org #22 2 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.