Plugin Pulse Beta
← Rankings

wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “transport plugin”

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 “transport plugin”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 10 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

HSTS Ready shows at wp.org #14 but places #20 on merit, a gap of 6 places. Its 3K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 4 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

WP Encryption: Easy HTTPS / SSL & Free SSL certificate, HTTPS redirect places #4 on merit, 4.9★ from 1146 reviews, but shows at wp.org #11. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Security Plugin, Firewall & Malware Scanner with Auto Removal 40K+ · 4.8★ (397) wp.org #1 2 FluentSMTP – WP Mail SMTP Plugin with Amazon SES, SendGrid, Mailgun, Postmark, Cloudflare, toSend, Gmail and Any SMTP 700K+ · 4.8★ (410) wp.org #2 3 Really Simple Security – Simple and Performant Security (formerly Really Simple SSL) 3M+ · 4.9★ (8869) wp.org #3 4 WP Encryption: Easy HTTPS / SSL & Free SSL certificate, HTTPS redirect 50K+ · 4.9★ (1146) wp.org #11 7 too low 5 Ultimate Maps by Supsystic – OpenStreetMap, Leaflet & Mapbox, No API Key 10K+ · 4.6★ (86) wp.org #6 ↓1 1 too low 6 Easy MCP AI – Connect Claude to WordPress: MCP Server for ChatGPT & AI Agents 30K+ · 4.9★ (16) wp.org #4 ↑4 2 too high 7 The SEO Framework – Fast, Automated, Effortless. 200K+ · 4.9★ (380) wp.org #9 ↑4 2 too low 8 HTTP Headers 40K+ · 4.3★ (70) wp.org #7 ↓3 1 too high 9 Easy HTTPS Redirection (SSL) 100K+ · 4.2★ (71) wp.org #8 ↓1 1 too high 10 Podlove Podcast Publisher 3K+ · 4.3★ (45) wp.org #5 ↑1 5 too high 11 WP Go Maps – Google Map, OpenStreetMap, Leaflet Map 300K+ · 4.8★ (3055) wp.org #17 ↓3 6 too low 12 Headers Security Advanced & HSTS WP 90K+ · 4.8★ (80) wp.org #12 ↓2 13 Noptin – Newsletter, New Post Notifications & Email Automation 10K+ · 4.5★ (120) wp.org #22 9 too low 14 E-cab Taxi Booking Manager for Woocommerce 2K+ · 4.9★ (28) wp.org #23 ↓2 9 too low 15 Simba Plugin Updates Manager 30+ · 5.0★ (5) wp.org #10 ↓1 5 too high 16 The School Management – Education & Learning ERP 700+ · 4.5★ (15) wp.org #19 ↓2 3 too low 17 WSP MCP – Free MCP Plugin for WordPress: Connect Claude, ChatGPT & AI Agents 3K+ · 5.0★ (6) wp.org #13 4 too high 18 Royal MCP – Secure AI Connector for Claude, ChatGPT & any LLM via MCP 10K+ · 5.0★ (7) wp.org #18 ↓2 19 OpenPorte Spam Protection 500+ · 5.0★ (5) wp.org #15 4 too high 20 HSTS Ready 3K+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #14 ↓2 6 too high 21 Blacklist Manager – WooCommerce Anti-Fraud, Blacklist & Checkout Verification 2K+ · 3.6★ (14) wp.org #21 ↓2 22 ABP Transport Booking — · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #16 ↓1 6 too high 23 MCP Adapter 60K+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #20 ↓2 3 too high 24 Travel Map 1K+ · 5.0★ (1) 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.