wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “translating”
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 “translating”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 7 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
AI powered Toolbar for writing and translating shows at wp.org #12 but places #24 on merit, a gap of 12 places. Its 30+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 3 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
Buried gem
Translate WordPress – Google Language Translator places #11 on merit, 4.7★ from 620 reviews, but shows at wp.org #16. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.
Contact Form 7 10M+ · 4.0★ (2186)
wp.org #1 2 
Polylang 900K+ · 4.7★ (3004)
wp.org #2 3 
Translate WordPress with GTranslate 900K+ · 4.9★ (4962)
wp.org #3 4 
TranslatePress – Translate Multilingual sites with AI Translation 400K+ · 4.7★ (1667)
wp.org #5 1 too low 5 
Loco Translate 1M+ · 4.8★ (453)
wp.org #4 1 too high 6 
Pods – Custom Content Types and Fields 100K+ · 4.8★ (418)
wp.org #6 7 
MailPoet – Newsletters, Email Marketing, and Automation 500K+ · 4.4★ (1435) heavy footprint
wp.org #7 8 
Firelight Lightbox 200K+ · 4.8★ (361)
wp.org #10 2 too low 9 
SVG Support 1M+ · 4.8★ (356)
wp.org #8 1 too high 10 
My Calendar – Accessible Event Manager 20K+ · 4.7★ (159)
wp.org #9 1 too high 11 Translate WordPress – Google Language Translator 100K+ · 4.7★ (620)
wp.org #16 ↑1 5 too low 12 
Site Reviews 60K+ · 4.9★ (376)
wp.org #17 ↓3 5 too low 13 
User Profile Builder – Beautiful User Registration Forms, User Profiles & User Role Editor 40K+ · 4.7★ (738)
wp.org #19 ↑2 6 too low 14 
SSL Insecure Content Fixer 100K+ · 4.8★ (221) not PHP-current
wp.org #13 1 too high 15 
Show modified Date in admin lists 6K+ · 4.9★ (32)
wp.org #11 4 too high 16 
Paid Membership Subscriptions – Effortless Memberships, Recurring Payments & Content Restriction 10K+ · 4.7★ (270)
wp.org #23 ↑1 7 too low 17 
GiveWP – Donation Plugin and Fundraising Platform 100K+ · 4.6★ (708) throws errorsnot PHP-currentheavy footprint
wp.org #21 ↓3 4 too low 18 
AutoPoly – AI Translation For Polylang 5K+ · 4.6★ (30)
wp.org #15 ↑1 3 too high 19 
Disable Emails 30K+ · 5.0★ (20) thin reviews
wp.org #18 ↑2 1 too high 20 
Print Invoice & Delivery Notes for WooCommerce 30K+ · 4.4★ (140) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #22 ↓3 2 too low 21 
YITH WooCommerce Compare 100K+ · 4.1★ (38) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #14 ↑1 7 too high 22 
Log Emails 6K+ · 5.0★ (11) thin reviews
wp.org #20 ↑2 2 too high 23 
Linguator – AI Auto Translate & Create Multilingual Sites 3K+ · 4.6★ (20) not PHP-current thin reviews
wp.org #24 1 too low 24 AI powered Toolbar for writing and translating 30+ · 5.0★ (3) not PHP-current thin reviews
wp.org #12 12 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.