Plugin Pulse Beta
← Rankings

wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “size”

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 “size”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 15 of the top 20. 4 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

WPC Product Size Chart for WooCommerce shows at wp.org #9 but places #19 on merit, a gap of 10 places. Its 2K+ 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

WP Fastest Cache – WordPress Cache Plugin places #9 on merit, 4.9★ from 4228 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 Variation Swatches for WooCommerce – Color, Image & Size Swatches 200K+ · 4.6★ (51) wp.org #1 2 EasyMedia – Increase Media Upload File Size | Role-Based Upload Limit | Increase Execution Time 70K+ · 4.9★ (99) wp.org #3 1 too low 3 Simple Image Sizes 60K+ · 4.6★ (91) wp.org #4 ↑1 1 too low 4 Perfect Images: Regenerate Thumbnails, Image Sizes, WebP & AVIF 60K+ · 4.8★ (279) wp.org #7 ↓1 3 too low 5 Big File Uploads – Increase Maximum File Upload Size 100K+ · 4.9★ (402) wp.org #10 ↓1 5 too low 6 Disable Media Sizes 10K+ · 5.0★ (23) wp.org #6 ↑1 7 Smush – Image Optimization, Compression, Lazy Load, WebP & CDN 1M+ · 4.8★ (6053) wp.org #17 ↑4 10 too low 8 Media Library File Size 6K+ · 4.6★ (5) wp.org #2 6 too high 9 WP Fastest Cache – WordPress Cache Plugin 1M+ · 4.9★ (4228) wp.org #21 ↑3 12 too low 10 WP-Optimize – Cache, Compress images, Minify & Clean database to boost page speed & performance 1M+ · 4.8★ (2617) wp.org #20 ↓4 10 too low 11 Forminator Forms – Contact Form, Payment Form & Custom Form Builder 600K+ · 4.8★ (2143) wp.org #23 ↓4 12 too low 12 Sizor Product Size Chart For WooCommerce 6K+ · 4.3★ (32) wp.org #5 ↓1 7 too high 13 Kadence Blocks — Page Builder Toolkit for Gutenberg Editor 600K+ · 4.8★ (333) wp.org #18 5 too low 14 Duplicator – Backups & Migration Plugin – Cloud Backups, Scheduled Backups, & More 1M+ · 4.9★ (4940) wp.org #19 ↓1 5 too low 15 Product Size Charts Plugin for WooCommerce 9K+ · 4.3★ (39) wp.org #8 ↑2 7 too high 16 WP Upload Size 2K+ · 4.5★ (8) wp.org #12 ↓1 4 too high 17 Better image sizes 2K+ · 5.0★ (5) wp.org #11 ↑1 6 too high 18 Media Size and Filter 100+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #16 ↑1 2 too high 19 WPC Product Size Chart for WooCommerce 2K+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #9 ↓1 10 too high 20 Max Upload File Size Manager 400+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #13 7 too high 21 SizeSync – Size Chart & Size Guide for WooCommerce 400+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #14 7 too high 22 A Advanced Custom Fields: Image Size Select Field 300+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #15 7 too high 23 Size Chart Product For Woocommerce 200+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #22 ↓2 1 too high 24 CS Size Chart 100+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #24 ↓2

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.