wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “slow requests”
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 “slow requests”, we and wp.org disagree on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 9 of the top 20.
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 the install base is organic or host-pushed, and its risk of being pulled.
Ranked above its merit
Footprint – Find what slows your site shows at wp.org #9 but places #24 on merit, a gap of 15 places. Its 200+ 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
Essential Addons for Elementor – Popular Elementor Templates & Widgets places #8 on merit, 4.9★ from 4132 reviews, but shows at wp.org #13. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.
Translate WordPress with GTranslate 900K+ · 4.9★ (4962)
wp.org #2 1 too low 2 
Wordfence Security – Firewall, Malware Scan, and Login Security 5M+ · 4.7★ (5040)
wp.org #4 2 too low 3 
HTTP Requests Manager 1K+ · 5.0★ (8) thin reviews
wp.org #1 2 too high 4 
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 #5 1 too low 5 
WP-Optimize – Cache, Compress images, Minify & Clean database to boost page speed & performance 1M+ · 4.8★ (2617)
wp.org #6 1 too low 6 
All-in-One WP Migration and Backup 5M+ · 4.5★ (7676)
wp.org #7 1 too low 7 
W3 Total Cache 900K+ · 4.4★ (5420)
wp.org #8 1 too low 8 Essential Addons for Elementor – Popular Elementor Templates & Widgets 1M+ · 4.9★ (4132)
wp.org #13 5 too low 9 
Burst Statistics – Simple WordPress Analytics (Google Analytics Alternative) 200K+ · 4.9★ (186)
wp.org #12 3 too low 10 
The Off Switch (formerly WP Avoid Slow) 200+ · 5.0★ (6) thin reviews
wp.org #3 7 too high 11 
Meow Gallery 10K+ · 4.9★ (203)
wp.org #15 4 too low 12 
Speed Optimizer – The All-In-One Performance-Boosting Plugin 1M+ · 4.2★ (641)
wp.org #11 1 too high 13 
Index WP MySQL For Speed 50K+ · 4.8★ (99)
wp.org #14 1 too low 14 
Simple History – Track, Log, and Audit WordPress Changes 300K+ · 4.9★ (491)
wp.org #19 5 too low 15 
Activity Log – Monitor User and Agent Changes 200K+ · 4.3★ (74)
wp.org #10 5 too high 16 
Kadence Blocks — Page Builder Toolkit for Gutenberg Editor 600K+ · 4.8★ (333)
wp.org #17 1 too low 17 
Meta Box – A Framework for Dynamic Websites 500K+ · 4.8★ (165)
wp.org #16 1 too high 18 
EWWW Image Optimizer 1M+ · 4.8★ (1842)
wp.org #21 3 too low 19 
Query Monitor 200K+ · 4.9★ (470)
wp.org #23 4 too low 20 
All-In-One Security (AIOS) – Security and Firewall 1M+ · 4.7★ (1720)
wp.org #22 2 too low 21 
FluentSnippets – High-Performance Code Snippets, Header & Footer Code, Custom CSS & PHP Code Manager 50K+ · 4.7★ (78)
wp.org #18 3 too high 22 
Flying Pages: Preload Pages for Faster Navigation & Improved User Experience 20K+ · 4.9★ (79)
wp.org #24 2 too low 23 
Direct Invoices – Invoicing & Payment Requests for WordPress 200+ · 5.0★ (3) thin reviews
wp.org #20 3 too high 24 Footprint – Find what slows your site 200+ · 5.0★ (1) thin reviews
wp.org #9 15 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.