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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “speed optimisation”

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 “speed optimisation”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 10 of the top 20. 1 plugin is 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

Inline Image Base64 – inline specific images into the HTML shows at wp.org #7 but places #21 on merit, a gap of 14 places. Its 90+ 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

Cookie Compliance for WordPress – Cookie Consent, GDPR & CCPA places #9 on merit, 4.8★ from 3026 reviews, but shows at wp.org #19. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Speed Optimizer – The All-In-One Performance-Boosting Plugin 1M+ · 4.2★ (641) wp.org #1 2 WP-Optimize – Cache, Compress images, Minify & Clean database to boost page speed & performance 1M+ · 4.8★ (2617) wp.org #2 3 Hummingbird Performance – Cache & Page Speed Optimization for Core Web Vitals | Critical CSS | Minify CSS | Defer CSS Javascript | CDN 70K+ · 4.7★ (1488) wp.org #5 2 too low 4 Docket Cache – Object Cache Accelerator 20K+ · 4.9★ (50) wp.org #3 1 too high 5 PhastPress 10K+ · 4.9★ (99) wp.org #6 1 too low 6 Imagify Image Optimization: Optimize Images | Compress & Convert to WebP/AVIF 900K+ · 4.3★ (1656) wp.org #8 2 too low 7 ShortPixel Image Optimizer – Optimize Images, Convert WebP & AVIF 300K+ · 4.5★ (830) wp.org #16 ↓3 9 too low 8 LWS Optimize – All-in-One Speed Booster & Cache Tools 20K+ · 4.6★ (9) wp.org #4 4 too high 9 Cookie Compliance for WordPress – Cookie Consent, GDPR & CCPA 800K+ · 4.8★ (3026) wp.org #19 10 too low 10 WP Super Minify • Minify, Compress and Cache HTML, CSS & JavaScript 8K+ · 4.1★ (73) wp.org #10 ↓1 11 Newsletter – Send awesome emails from WordPress 200K+ · 4.6★ (1205) wp.org #17 6 too low 12 Product Feed for Google Shopping, Microsoft Advertising and 40+ Channels for WooCommerce Merchant 2K+ · 4.8★ (87) wp.org #14 ↑2 2 too low 13 Featherweight 10K+ · 4.1★ (45) wp.org #13 ↑1 14 WPS Bidouille 9K+ · 4.9★ (54) wp.org #22 8 too low 15 Preload LCP Image 3K+ · 4.8★ (5) wp.org #11 4 too high 16 LWS Tools 10K+ · 5.0★ (6) wp.org #9 ↑1 7 too high 17 Performance Optimisation — · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #12 5 too high 18 Nexter Extension – Security, Performance, Code Snippets & Site Toolkit 10K+ · 4.7★ (13) wp.org #24 6 too low 19 Gumlet – Image optimization with Resize, Compression, Lazy load, Caching & CDN delivery 400+ · 4.4★ (10) wp.org #21 2 too low 20 Bulk Page Stub Creator 500+ · 4.7★ (3) wp.org #18 2 too high 21 Inline Image Base64 – inline specific images into the HTML 90+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #7 14 too high 22 ABCode Cache Warmer 100+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #15 7 too high 23 WP Flashy Marketing Automation 2K+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #20 3 too high 24 Import into Easy Property Listings 1K+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #23 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.