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← Rankings

wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “site structure”

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

Simple Site Map Page shows at wp.org #7 but places #20 on merit, a gap of 13 places. Its 6K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 4.3★ average from 6 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Folders – Unlimited Folders to Organize Media Library Folder, Pages, Posts, File Manager places #6 on merit, 5.0★ from 1525 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.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Yoast SEO – Advanced SEO with real-time guidance and built-in AI 10M+ · 4.8★ (27821) wp.org #1 2 Translate WordPress with GTranslate 900K+ · 4.9★ (4962) wp.org #3 ↓1 1 too low 3 Elementor Website Builder – more than just a page builder 10M+ · 4.5★ (7323) wp.org #2 ↑2 1 too high 4 SEOPress – AI SEO Plugin & On-site SEO 300K+ · 4.8★ (1267) wp.org #6 ↓1 2 too low 5 Custom Permalinks 100K+ · 4.1★ (116) wp.org #4 ↓1 1 too high 6 Folders – Unlimited Folders to Organize Media Library Folder, Pages, Posts, File Manager 90K+ · 5.0★ (1525) wp.org #14 ↑3 8 too low 7 Advanced Database Cleaner – Optimize & Clean Database to Speed Up Site Performance 100K+ · 4.9★ (1962) wp.org #15 ↓7 8 too low 8 Simply Static – The Static Site Generator 30K+ · 4.5★ (195) wp.org #9 ↓2 1 too low 9 Wordfence Security – Firewall, Malware Scan, and Login Security 5M+ · 4.7★ (5039) wp.org #11 ↓1 2 too low 10 Custom Post Type UI 1M+ · 4.6★ (276) wp.org #8 ↑6 2 too high 11 CMS Tree Page View – Reorder Pages with a Drag-and-Drop Tree 50K+ · 4.9★ (365) wp.org #13 ↓2 2 too low 12 Multiple Domain Mapping on Single Site 6K+ · 4.6★ (48) wp.org #5 7 too high 13 Ultimate Member – User Profile, Registration, Login, Member Directory, Content Restriction & Membership Plugin 200K+ · 4.4★ (1445) wp.org #18 ↓2 5 too low 14 Pods – Custom Content Types and Fields 100K+ · 4.8★ (418) wp.org #23 ↓4 9 too low 15 Advanced Custom Fields (ACF®) 2M+ · 4.5★ (1440) wp.org #16 ↑7 1 too low 16 Redirection 2M+ · 4.4★ (703) wp.org #17 ↓4 1 too low 17 Jetpack – AI Agents & MCP, Security, Backup & Analytics 3M+ · 3.7★ (2408) wp.org #20 3 too low 18 Starter Templates & Sites Pack by ThemeGrill 70K+ · 4.7★ (197) wp.org #22 ↓1 4 too low 19 Schema & Structured Data for WP & AMP 100K+ · 4.5★ (252) wp.org #21 ↓1 2 too low 20 Simple Site Map Page 6K+ · 4.3★ (6) wp.org #7 ↓1 13 too high 21 Confirm Theme Structure 100+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #10 ↓1 11 too high 22 UWH Site Migrator – WP Migration, Backup & Restore 100+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #24 2 too low 23 Site Assets 300+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #12 11 too high 24 WP Maintenance Mode & Site Under Construction 3K+ · 3.5★ (4) 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.