wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “think”
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 “think”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 11 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
WooCommerce Tax (formerly WooCommerce Shipping & Tax) shows at wp.org #3 but places #16 on merit, a gap of 13 places. Its 500K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 2.1★ average from 106 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
Buried gem
Popup Builder – Create highly converting, mobile friendly marketing popups. places #7 on merit, 4.7★ from 2215 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.
Autoptimize 800K+ · 4.7★ (1428)
wp.org #1 2 
Forminator Forms – Contact Form, Payment Form & Custom Form Builder 600K+ · 4.8★ (2144)
wp.org #2 3 
Antispam Bee 700K+ · 4.8★ (226)
wp.org #4 1 too low 4 
Kadence Blocks — Page Builder Toolkit for Gutenberg Editor 600K+ · 4.8★ (333)
wp.org #6 ↓1 2 too low 5 
Quotes llama 1K+ · 4.6★ (30)
wp.org #5 ↓2 6 W WP-SCSS 40K+ · 4.3★ (62)
wp.org #7 ↑5 1 too low 7 Popup Builder – Create highly converting, mobile friendly marketing popups. 200K+ · 4.7★ (2215)
wp.org #19 12 too low 8 
YITH WooCommerce Wishlist 400K+ · 3.9★ (262)
wp.org #9 ↑2 1 too low 9 
Statify 100K+ · 4.8★ (51)
wp.org #10 ↓2 1 too low 10 
Image Photo Gallery Final Tiles Grid 20K+ · 4.7★ (353)
wp.org #16 ↓3 6 too low 11 
Genesis eNews Extended 40K+ · 4.7★ (28)
wp.org #8 ↓2 3 too high 12 
Perfect Images: Regenerate Thumbnails, Image Sizes, WebP & AVIF 60K+ · 4.8★ (279)
wp.org #17 ↑4 5 too low 13 
WP Go Maps – Google Map, OpenStreetMap, Leaflet Map 300K+ · 4.8★ (3055)
wp.org #24 ↓17 11 too low 14 
Database Backup for WordPress 60K+ · 4.5★ (66)
wp.org #12 ↑3 2 too high 15 
WP Downgrade | Specific Core Version 100K+ · 4.8★ (169)
wp.org #18 3 too low 16 WooCommerce Tax (formerly WooCommerce Shipping & Tax) 500K+ · 2.1★ (106) low rating, top placement
wp.org #3 ↑6 13 too high 17 
Imagify Image Optimization: Optimize Images | Compress & Convert to WebP/AVIF 900K+ · 4.3★ (1657)
wp.org #21 ↑2 4 too low 18 
Passster – Password Protect Pages and Content 10K+ · 4.2★ (60)
wp.org #13 ↓3 5 too high 19 
AntiVirus 30K+ · 4.1★ (23) thin reviews
wp.org #11 ↑3 8 too high 20 
Multiple Domain Mapping on Single Site 6K+ · 4.6★ (48)
wp.org #23 3 too low 21 
HookMeUp for WooCommerce 10K+ · 4.9★ (7) thin reviews
wp.org #15 ↑2 6 too high 22 A Action Scheduler 20K+ · 3.5★ (13) thin reviews
wp.org #14 ↑4 8 too high 23 
WPC Free Shipping Bar for WooCommerce 3K+ · 4.2★ (13) thin reviews
wp.org #22 ↑2 1 too high 24 
WPGraphQL for ACF 10K+ · 5.0★ (1) thin reviews
wp.org #20 4 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.