wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “special”
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 “special”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 13 of the top 20. 7 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
Remove Special Characters From Permalinks shows at wp.org #3 but places #19 on merit, a gap of 16 places. Its 70+ 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
Anti-Malware Security and Brute-Force Firewall places #10 on merit, 4.9★ from 783 reviews, but shows at wp.org #20. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.
Insert Special Characters 3K+ · 4.9★ (8) thin reviews
wp.org #1 2 
Paid Membership Subscriptions – Effortless Memberships, Recurring Payments & Content Restriction 10K+ · 4.7★ (270)
wp.org #5 3 too low 3 
Germanized for WooCommerce 70K+ · 4.8★ (496)
wp.org #7 4 too low 4 
We’re Open! 5K+ · 5.0★ (45)
wp.org #4 5 
Email Encoder – Protect Email Addresses and Phone Numbers 90K+ · 4.9★ (94)
wp.org #6 1 too low 6 
ElementsKit Elementor Addons – Advanced Widgets & Templates Addons for Elementor 1M+ · 4.9★ (2051)
wp.org #9 ↑1 3 too low 7 
Special Text Boxes 1K+ · 3.4★ (21) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviewslow rating, top placement
wp.org #2 5 too high 8 
Pods – Custom Content Types and Fields 100K+ · 4.8★ (418)
wp.org #13 5 too low 9 
WP Statistics – Simple, privacy-friendly Google Analytics alternative 500K+ · 4.1★ (758)
wp.org #10 ↑1 1 too low 10 Anti-Malware Security and Brute-Force Firewall 100K+ · 4.9★ (783)
wp.org #20 10 too low 11 
Greenshift – animation and page builder blocks 70K+ · 4.8★ (107) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #8 3 too high 12 
LoginWP (Formerly Peter's Login Redirect) 80K+ · 4.8★ (503)
wp.org #19 7 too low 13 
HUSKY – Products Filter for WooCommerce Professional. MCP is onboard 80K+ · 4.6★ (337) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #11 ↓2 2 too high 14 
Cart Abandonment Recovery for WooCommerce – Recover Lost Sales with Automated Emails 300K+ · 4.8★ (625) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #14 ↑4 15 
Advanced Ads – Ad Manager & AdSense 90K+ · 4.9★ (1463) not PHP-current
wp.org #22 7 too low 16 
Jetpack Boost – Website Speed, Performance and Critical CSS 200K+ · 4.7★ (612)
wp.org #24 8 too low 17 
Imsanity 200K+ · 4.9★ (291)
wp.org #23 ↓1 6 too low 18 
Gallery PhotoBlocks 3K+ · 5.0★ (76)
wp.org #17 ↓1 1 too high 19 Remove Special Characters From Permalinks 70+ · 5.0★ (3) thin reviews
wp.org #3 16 too high 20 
GSheetConnector – CF7 Google Sheets Connector & Save CF7 Entries to Database 40K+ · 4.4★ (129) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #12 8 too high 21 
Genesis eNews Extended 40K+ · 4.7★ (28)
wp.org #15 ↓1 6 too high 22 
Master Slider – Responsive Touch Slider 60K+ · 4.6★ (504) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #21 1 too high 23 
Advanced Woo Labels – Product Labels & Badges for WooCommerce 10K+ · 5.0★ (64) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #18 5 too high 24 S Saphali Woocommerce Lite 10K+ · 4.2★ (25) throws errorsnot PHP-current
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.