wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “super”
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 “super”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 14 of the top 20. 3 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
Super Advent Calendar shows at wp.org #7 but places #18 on merit, a gap of 11 places. Its 300+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 5 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
Buried gem
Backup Migration places #9 on merit, 4.9★ from 1338 reviews, but shows at wp.org #23. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.
WP Super Cache 1M+ · 4.3★ (1346)
wp.org #1 2 
Super Page Cache – Cloudflare Cache, Page Speed & Core Web Vitals 70K+ · 4.8★ (517)
wp.org #2 3 
Super Progressive Web Apps 40K+ · 4.6★ (225)
wp.org #3 4 
Forminator Forms – Contact Form, Payment Form & Custom Form Builder 600K+ · 4.8★ (2143)
wp.org #8 ↑1 4 too low 5 
Super Web Share – Native Social Sharing Button 2K+ · 4.9★ (29)
wp.org #4 1 too high 6 
Super RSS Reader – Add attractive RSS Feed Widget 9K+ · 4.6★ (67)
wp.org #6 7 
The Events Calendar 600K+ · 4.2★ (2461)
wp.org #10 ↓2 3 too low 8 
WP Super Minify • Minify, Compress and Cache HTML, CSS & JavaScript 8K+ · 4.1★ (73)
wp.org #9 ↓2 1 too low 9 Backup Migration 80K+ · 4.9★ (1338)
wp.org #23 ↑1 14 too low 10 
Disable Gutenberg 500K+ · 5.0★ (735)
wp.org #21 ↓1 11 too low 11 
Maintenance 1M+ · 4.4★ (869)
wp.org #16 5 too low 12 
Jetpack – AI Agents & MCP, Security, Backup & Analytics 3M+ · 3.7★ (2408)
wp.org #15 ↑7 3 too low 13 
Super Blank 9K+ · 4.5★ (8) thin reviews
wp.org #5 8 too high 14 
Simple CAPTCHA with Cloudflare Turnstile 200K+ · 4.7★ (262) not PHP-current
wp.org #18 ↓1 4 too low 15 
Super Testimonial – Testimonial & Customer Review Slider Plugin for WordPress 2K+ · 4.7★ (26) not PHP-current
wp.org #11 ↓1 4 too high 16 
Scriptless Social Sharing 10K+ · 5.0★ (70)
wp.org #24 8 too low 17 
Super block slider – Image/video background & content slider 8K+ · 5.0★ (14) thin reviews
wp.org #12 ↓1 5 too high 18 Super Advent Calendar 300+ · 5.0★ (5) thin reviews
wp.org #7 ↑5 11 too high 19 
Super Video player – Fully Customizable Video Player with Playlist 2K+ · 4.2★ (30) not PHP-current
wp.org #13 6 too high 20 
Affiliate Super Assistent 1K+ · 4.6★ (36)
wp.org #22 ↓1 2 too low 21 
Super Simple Event Calendar 600+ · 5.0★ (5) thin reviews
wp.org #14 7 too high 22 
Super Preloader for Cloudflare 100+ · 5.0★ (4) thin reviews
wp.org #19 3 too high 23 
Clear All Cache for WP Super Cache 6K+ · 3.1★ (11) thin reviews
wp.org #20 ↓2 3 too high 24 
Super Payments – WooCommerce Payment Gateway 200+ · 3.6★ (5) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews
wp.org #17 ↓2 7 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.