wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “stylesheets”
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 “stylesheets”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 8 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
GDPRess | Eliminate external requests to increase GDPR compliance shows at wp.org #12 but places #22 on merit, a gap of 10 places. Its 1K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 8 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
Buried gem
Disable Gutenberg places #10 on merit, 5.0★ from 735 reviews, but shows at wp.org #15. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.
The Events Calendar 600K+ · 4.2★ (2461)
wp.org #1 2 
Elementor Website Builder – more than just a page builder 10M+ · 4.5★ (7323) not PHP-currentheavy footprint
wp.org #2 ↑1 3 
Insert Headers And Footers 200K+ · 5.0★ (135)
wp.org #3 ↓1 4 
WP Accessibility 60K+ · 4.8★ (68)
wp.org #4 ↑3 5 
OMGF | GDPR/DSGVO Compliant, Faster Google Fonts. Easy. 300K+ · 4.7★ (213)
wp.org #5 6 
Query Monitor 200K+ · 4.9★ (470)
wp.org #9 ↓1 3 too low 7 
PhastPress 10K+ · 4.9★ (99)
wp.org #7 ↑2 8 
Dark Mode for WP Dashboard 3K+ · 4.8★ (34)
wp.org #6 ↓2 2 too high 9 
Add Admin CSS 10K+ · 4.9★ (35)
wp.org #8 ↑2 1 too high 10 Disable Gutenberg 500K+ · 5.0★ (735)
wp.org #15 ↓1 5 too low 11 
XML Sitemap & Google News 100K+ · 4.4★ (85)
wp.org #10 ↑11 1 too high 12 
Beaver Builder Page Builder – Drag and Drop Website Builder 100K+ · 4.7★ (394)
wp.org #17 ↑6 5 too low 13 
WP Fastest Cache – WordPress Cache Plugin 1M+ · 4.9★ (4228)
wp.org #20 7 too low 14 
Make Column Clickable for Elementor 100K+ · 4.9★ (53)
wp.org #14 15 W WP-SCSS 40K+ · 4.3★ (61)
wp.org #13 2 too high 16 
WP-PageNavi 400K+ · 4.7★ (149)
wp.org #18 ↓12 2 too low 17 
One Click SSL 10K+ · 4.9★ (139)
wp.org #23 ↓4 6 too low 18 
Redux Framework 900K+ · 4.4★ (273)
wp.org #21 ↓9 3 too low 19 
Event Tickets and Registration 90K+ · 3.5★ (236) heavy footprint
wp.org #16 ↑1 3 too high 20 
Genesis Connect for WooCommerce 10K+ · 4.1★ (17) thin reviews
wp.org #11 ↑2 9 too high 21 
Animations for Blocks 10K+ · 4.8★ (27)
wp.org #22 ↓6 1 too low 22 GDPRess | Eliminate external requests to increase GDPR compliance 1K+ · 5.0★ (8) thin reviews
wp.org #12 ↓1 10 too high 23 
Speed Up – Optimize CSS Delivery 500+ · 5.0★ (8) thin reviews
wp.org #19 ↑1 4 too high 24 
EasyFonts – Host Google Fonts Locally, Fast & Auto-Optimize, GDPR Compliant 1K+ · 5.0★ (6) thin reviews
wp.org #24 ↓2 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.