wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “user bio”

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 “user bio”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 9 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

User Registration for Elementor Forms shows at wp.org #5 but places #21 on merit, a gap of 16 places. Its 300+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 1 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Ultimate Addons for Elementor – Widgets, Templates, WooCommerce & Header Footer Builder places #10 on merit, 4.9★ from 2528 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.

merit plugin signals wp.org

Elementor Website Builder – more than just a page builder 10M+ · 4.5★ (7322) wp.org #1 2

UsersWP – Front-end login form, User Registration, User Profile & Members Directory plugin for WP 20K+ · 4.7★ (183) wp.org #3 1 too low 3

All in One SEO – AI SEO Plugin to Boost SEO Rankings & Traffic (Schema, Local SEO, Sitemap & SEO Insights) 2M+ · 4.7★ (5231) wp.org #4 1 too low 4

PrettyLinks – Affiliate Link Management, URL Shortener, Link Cloaking, Tracking & Branded Short Links 200K+ · 4.8★ (1322) wp.org #6 2 too low 5

Link in Bio Creator – Social 2K+ · 4.3★ (21) thin reviews wp.org #2 3 too high 6

Molongui Authorship – Author Boxes, Guest Authors & Co-Authors for WordPress 10K+ · 4.7★ (158) wp.org #7 1 too low 7

ElementsKit Elementor Addons – Advanced Widgets & Templates Addons for Elementor 1M+ · 4.9★ (2051) wp.org #9 2 too low 8

Co-Authors, Multiple Authors and Guest Authors in an Author Box with PublishPress Authors 20K+ · 4.9★ (114) wp.org #8 9

Smash Balloon Social Photo Feed – Easy Social Feeds Plugin 1M+ · 4.9★ (4358) wp.org #11 2 too low 10

Ultimate Addons for Elementor – Widgets, Templates, WooCommerce & Header Footer Builder 2M+ · 4.9★ (2528) wp.org #15 ↑1 5 too low 11

Simple Author Box 90K+ · 4.3★ (115) wp.org #10 1 too high 12

WP Social Ninja – Embed Social Feeds, User Reviews & Chat Widgets 30K+ · 4.8★ (71) wp.org #12 13

Spotlight Social Photo Feed 50K+ · 4.7★ (171) wp.org #16 ↓1 3 too low 14

Royal Addons for Elementor – Addons and Templates Kit for Elementor 600K+ · 4.8★ (612) wp.org #19 ↓1 5 too low 15

SiteOrigin Widgets Bundle 400K+ · 4.9★ (134) wp.org #18 3 too low 16

Team – Team Members Showcase Plugin 10K+ · 4.5★ (67) wp.org #17 1 too low 17

XML Sitemap & Google News 100K+ · 4.4★ (85) wp.org #20 ↓1 3 too low 18

WP Post Author – Author Box, Multiple Authors, Guest Authors & Custom Avatars 10K+ · 4.2★ (22) thin reviews wp.org #14 ↓1 4 too high 19

Author Box WP Lens 900+ · 5.0★ (12) thin reviews wp.org #23 ↓2 4 too low 20

Registration Form for WooCommerce 1K+ · 5.0★ (3) thin reviews wp.org #13 ↑1 7 too high 21

User Registration for Elementor Forms 300+ · 5.0★ (1) thin reviews wp.org #5 16 too high 22

Fake User Detector 90+ · 0.0★ (0) thin reviews wp.org #21 ↑2 1 too high 23

Pressific Bio for LLMs.txt 80+ · 0.0★ (0) thin reviews wp.org #24 ↓2 1 too low 24 C Custom User Registration Fields for Tutor LMS 300+ · 3.0★ (1) thin reviews wp.org #22 ↓2 2 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.