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

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 “sizes”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 12 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

SizeSync – Size Chart & Size Guide for WooCommerce shows at wp.org #7 but places #22 on merit, a gap of 15 places. Its 400+ 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

WP Fastest Cache – WordPress Cache Plugin places #9 on merit, 4.9★ from 4228 reviews, but shows at wp.org #18. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin signals wp.org

Simple Image Sizes 60K+ · 4.6★ (91) wp.org #1 2

Disable Media Sizes 10K+ · 5.0★ (23) thin reviews wp.org #2 3

Perfect Images: Regenerate Thumbnails, Image Sizes, WebP & AVIF 60K+ · 4.8★ (279) wp.org #4 1 too low 4

Smush – Image Optimization, Compression, Lazy Load, WebP & CDN 1M+ · 4.8★ (6053) wp.org #9 ↑4 5 too low 5

Variation Swatches for WooCommerce – Color, Image & Size Swatches 200K+ · 4.6★ (51) wp.org #5 6

Big File Uploads – Increase Maximum File Upload Size 100K+ · 4.9★ (402) wp.org #10 ↓1 4 too low 7

ThumbPress – Compress Images, Manage Thumbnails, Detect Image Issues, WebP/AVIF, Lazy Loading, Hotlinking & More 20K+ · 3.7★ (117) wp.org #6 1 too high 8

WP-Optimize – Cache, Compress images, Minify & Clean database to boost page speed & performance 1M+ · 4.8★ (2617) wp.org #15 7 too low 9

WP Fastest Cache – WordPress Cache Plugin 1M+ · 4.9★ (4228) wp.org #18 ↑2 9 too low 10

Forminator Forms – Contact Form, Payment Form & Custom Form Builder 600K+ · 4.8★ (2143) wp.org #19 ↓3 9 too low 11

Kadence Blocks — Page Builder Toolkit for Gutenberg Editor 600K+ · 4.8★ (333) heavy footprint wp.org #12 ↑11 1 too low 12

Better image sizes 2K+ · 5.0★ (5) thin reviews wp.org #3 9 too high 13

Duplicator – Backups & Migration Plugin – Cloud Backups, Scheduled Backups, & More 1M+ · 4.9★ (4940) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #13 ↓3 14

All-in-One WP Migration and Backup 5M+ · 4.5★ (7676) wp.org #22 8 too low 15

Admin and Site Enhancements (ASE) 200K+ · 5.0★ (423) wp.org #24 9 too low 16

EasyMedia – Increase Media Upload File Size | Role-Based Upload Limit | Increase Execution Time 70K+ · 4.9★ (99) wp.org #20 ↓3 4 too low 17

Speed Optimizer – The All-In-One Performance-Boosting Plugin 1M+ · 4.2★ (641) wp.org #23 ↓2 6 too low 18

Sizor Product Size Chart For WooCommerce 6K+ · 4.3★ (32) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #14 ↓3 4 too high 19

Product Size Charts Plugin for WooCommerce 9K+ · 4.3★ (39) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #17 ↑5 2 too high 20

WP Image Sizes 50+ · 5.0★ (4) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews wp.org #8 12 too high 21

Media Library File Size 6K+ · 4.6★ (5) thin reviews wp.org #11 ↑1 10 too high 22

SizeSync – Size Chart & Size Guide for WooCommerce 400+ · 5.0★ (1) thin reviews wp.org #7 15 too high 23

WPC Product Size Chart for WooCommerce 2K+ · 5.0★ (3) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews wp.org #21 ↓3 2 too high 24

Enhanced Responsive Images 50K+ · 0.0★ (0) thin reviews wp.org #16 ↓2 8 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.