wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “strip content”
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 “strip content”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 8 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
AI Content Writer – Automatic Content Generator and Auto Poster shows at wp.org #4 but places #22 on merit, a gap of 18 places. Its 200+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 2 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
Buried gem
Responsive Lightbox & Gallery places #11 on merit, 4.9★ from 2003 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.
WP Content Copy Protection & No Right Click 100K+ · 4.8★ (1138)
wp.org #1 2 
Admin and Site Enhancements (ASE) 200K+ · 5.0★ (423)
wp.org #5 3 too low 3 
WPSSO Strip Schema Microdata 200+ · 4.9★ (14) thin reviews
wp.org #2 1 too high 4 
RPS Include Content 700+ · 4.9★ (18) thin reviews
wp.org #3 1 too high 5 
Members – Membership & User Role Editor Plugin 300K+ · 4.9★ (1281)
wp.org #10 ↓1 5 too low 6 
WPVibe – MCP Server for WordPress, works with Claude, ChatGPT & other AI MCP agents 100K+ · 5.0★ (199)
wp.org #8 ↓1 2 too low 7 
WP Accessibility 60K+ · 4.8★ (68)
wp.org #6 1 too high 8 
Modula Image Gallery – Photo Grid & Video Gallery 100K+ · 4.7★ (616)
wp.org #12 ↓2 4 too low 9 
OMGF | GDPR/DSGVO Compliant, Faster Google Fonts. Easy. 300K+ · 4.7★ (213)
wp.org #9 ↓1 10 
Photonic Gallery & Lightbox for Flickr, SmugMug & Others 10K+ · 4.8★ (193)
wp.org #11 ↑8 1 too low 11 Responsive Lightbox & Gallery 100K+ · 4.9★ (2003)
wp.org #18 ↓6 7 too low 12 
Media Library Assistant 70K+ · 4.8★ (202)
wp.org #13 ↑8 1 too low 13 
Hide My WP Ghost – Security & Firewall 100K+ · 4.5★ (373)
wp.org #14 1 too low 14 
AI-Powered Carousel, Slider, Video & Photo Gallery Blocks by WP Carousel 60K+ · 4.7★ (434)
wp.org #17 3 too low 15 
Structured Content (JSON-LD) #wpsc 30K+ · 4.6★ (25)
wp.org #7 ↓2 8 too high 16 
Fonts Plugin | Google Fonts, Adobe Fonts & Upload Fonts 200K+ · 5.0★ (1221)
wp.org #22 ↓5 6 too low 17 
Postie 10K+ · 4.7★ (139)
wp.org #15 ↑1 2 too high 18 
Divi Torque Lite 50K+ · 4.7★ (116)
wp.org #16 ↓5 2 too high 19 D Disable Emojis (GDPR friendly) 60K+ · 5.0★ (108)
wp.org #20 ↓6 1 too low 20 P Page-list 30K+ · 4.7★ (89)
wp.org #21 ↓6 1 too low 21 
Remove Category URL – Remove ‘category’ base from category permalinks 40K+ · 4.3★ (61)
wp.org #24 ↓4 3 too low 22 AI Content Writer – Automatic Content Generator and Auto Poster 200+ · 5.0★ (2) thin reviews
wp.org #4 18 too high 23 
PDF Forms Filler for CF7 3K+ · 4.8★ (13) thin reviews
wp.org #23 ↓5 24 
bSlider – Build Sliders That Bring Your Content to Life 5K+ · 4.0★ (11) thin reviews
wp.org #19 ↓6 5 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.