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

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

WP Global Site Tag shows at wp.org #6 but places #19 on merit, a gap of 13 places. Its 7K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 2 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Customer Reviews for WooCommerce places #12 on merit, 4.8★ from 1539 reviews, but shows at wp.org #21. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Admin and Site Enhancements (ASE) 200K+ · 5.0★ (423) wp.org #1 2 Site Reviews 60K+ · 4.9★ (376) wp.org #2 3 Yoast SEO – Advanced SEO with real-time guidance and built-in AI 10M+ · 4.8★ (27821) wp.org #5 2 too low 4 Elementor Website Builder – more than just a page builder 10M+ · 4.5★ (7323) wp.org #3 1 too high 5 WP Mail SMTP by WPForms – SMTP for Reliable Email Delivery with Gmail, Outlook, Amazon SES, Brevo, Other SMTP & More 4M+ · 4.8★ (5209) wp.org #7 ↓1 2 too low 6 Wordfence Security – Firewall, Malware Scan, and Login Security 5M+ · 4.7★ (5039) wp.org #8 2 too low 7 Widgets for Google Reviews 1M+ · 4.9★ (2667) wp.org #10 3 too low 8 Live Summary for Gravity Forms 1K+ · 5.0★ (18) wp.org #4 4 too high 9 Advanced Database Cleaner – Optimize & Clean Database to Speed Up Site Performance 100K+ · 4.9★ (1962) wp.org #17 ↓5 8 too low 10 Post Views Counter 100K+ · 4.9★ (1237) wp.org #16 6 too low 11 Fluent Forms – Customizable Contact Forms, Survey, Quiz, & Conversational Form Builder 800K+ · 4.8★ (807) wp.org #13 ↓3 2 too low 12 Customer Reviews for WooCommerce 80K+ · 4.8★ (1539) wp.org #21 ↓2 9 too low 13 Jetpack – AI Agents & MCP, Security, Backup & Analytics 3M+ · 3.7★ (2408) wp.org #12 ↑2 1 too high 14 Simple History – Track, Log, and Audit WordPress Changes 300K+ · 4.9★ (491) wp.org #22 ↓4 8 too low 15 Share Buttons & AI-powered Summaries 1K+ · 5.0★ (16) wp.org #9 6 too high 16 Security Optimizer – The All-In-One Protection Plugin 1M+ · 4.5★ (157) wp.org #24 8 too low 17 WP Fastest Site Search 100+ · 5.0★ (27) wp.org #18 1 too low 18 DiveWP – Boost Site Performance with Clear, Actionable Steps 200+ · 5.0★ (6) wp.org #15 ↑2 3 too high 19 WP Global Site Tag 7K+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #6 ↑1 13 too high 20 Kadence Central – Site Management, Backups, Security, and Reporting 30K+ · 4.2★ (5) wp.org #11 9 too high 21 WPSummarize – AI Summaries with key takeaways for your posts 100+ · 5.0★ (6) wp.org #20 ↑1 1 too high 22 Site Lockdown Security 700+ · 5.0★ (5) wp.org #19 3 too high 23 Summary box for Wikipedia links 30+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #14 ↑2 9 too high 24 Manage – Centralized site maintenance and monitoring 100K+ · 2.0★ (1) wp.org #23 ↓1 1 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.