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

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 optimization”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 5 of the top 20. 2 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

Image Optimizer – Compress Images and Convert to WebP or AVIF shows at wp.org #13 but places #24 on merit, a gap of 11 places. Its 1M+ installs carry it up the search order; its 1.7★ average from 81 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

merit plugin wp.org
1 10Web Booster – Website speed optimization, Cache & Page Speed optimizer 60K+ · 4.6★ (405) wp.org #1 ↑1 2 Super Page Cache – Cloudflare Cache, Page Speed & Core Web Vitals 70K+ · 4.8★ (517) wp.org #3 ↑1 1 too low 3 Speed Optimizer – The All-In-One Performance-Boosting Plugin 1M+ · 4.2★ (641) wp.org #2 ↑1 1 too high 4 Smush – Image Optimization, Compression, Lazy Load, WebP & CDN 1M+ · 4.8★ (6053) wp.org #5 ↑2 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 WP Meteor Website Speed Optimization Addon 20K+ · 4.7★ (77) wp.org #4 ↑1 2 too high 7 Hummingbird Performance – Cache & Page Speed Optimization for Core Web Vitals | Critical CSS | Minify CSS | Defer CSS Javascript | CDN 70K+ · 4.7★ (1488) wp.org #8 1 too low 8 WP Fastest Cache – WordPress Cache Plugin 1M+ · 4.9★ (4228) wp.org #7 ↑4 1 too high 9 Forminator Forms – Contact Form, Payment Form & Custom Form Builder 600K+ · 4.8★ (2143) wp.org #10 ↑3 1 too low 10 Imagify Image Optimization: Optimize Images | Compress & Convert to WebP/AVIF 900K+ · 4.3★ (1656) wp.org #11 ↓1 1 too low 11 WP Compress – Instant Performance & Speed Optimization 9K+ · 4.5★ (155) wp.org #9 2 too high 12 Jetpack Boost – Website Speed, Performance and Critical CSS 200K+ · 4.7★ (612) wp.org #14 ↑4 2 too low 13 NitroPack – Performance, Page Speed & Cache Plugin for Core Web Vitals, CDN & Image Optimization 90K+ · 4.3★ (311) wp.org #12 1 too high 14 Autoptimize 800K+ · 4.7★ (1428) wp.org #20 ↑3 6 too low 15 Optimole – Optimize Images | Convert WebP & AVIF | CDN & Lazy Load | Image Optimization 200K+ · 4.7★ (640) wp.org #22 7 too low 16 Speed Booster Pack ⚡ PageSpeed Optimization Suite 8K+ · 4.3★ (186) wp.org #15 1 too high 17 Elementor Website Builder – more than just a page builder 10M+ · 4.5★ (7323) wp.org #24 7 too low 18 Robin Image Optimizer – Unlimited Image Optimization, WebP & AVIF 100K+ · 4.4★ (131) wp.org #23 ↑1 5 too low 19 WPSpeed – WordPress Speed, Cache & Performance Optimization (Core Web Vitals, PageSpeed 100) 2K+ · 4.9★ (40) wp.org #19 ↑1 20 Flying Analytics: Self-Host Google Analytics v4 with Speed Optimization 4K+ · 4.9★ (14) wp.org #16 4 too high 21 SpeedyCache – Cache, Optimization, Performance 500K+ · 4.4★ (30) wp.org #18 ↑1 3 too high 22 LWS Optimize – All-in-One Speed Booster & Cache Tools 20K+ · 4.6★ (9) wp.org #21 ↑1 1 too high 23 AEH Speed Optimization: Browser Cache, Optimized Minify, Lazy Loading & Image Optimization 2K+ · 3.2★ (20) wp.org #17 6 too high 24 Image Optimizer – Compress Images and Convert to WebP or AVIF 1M+ · 1.7★ (81) wp.org #13 ↑1 11 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.