wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “user feedback”
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 feedback”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 9 of the top 20. 2 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
Feedback Button – Jotform shows at wp.org #6 but places #20 on merit, a gap of 14 places. Its 600+ installs carry it up the search order; its 4.0★ average from 3 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
Buried gem
WPForms – AI Form Builder for WordPress – Contact Forms, Payment Forms, Survey Form, Quiz & More places #8 on merit, 4.8★ from 14387 reviews, but shows at wp.org #14. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.
kk Star Ratings – Rate Post & Collect User Feedbacks 70K+ · 3.9★ (171)
wp.org #1 2 
UserFeedback – Create Interactive Feedback Form, User Surveys, and Polls in Seconds 200K+ · 4.8★ (309)
wp.org #2 3 
User Registration & Membership – Free & Paid Memberships, Subscriptions, Content Restriction, User Profile, Custom User Registration & Login Builder 50K+ · 4.8★ (832)
wp.org #3 4 
User Submitted Posts – Enable Users to Submit Posts from the Front End 10K+ · 4.8★ (913)
wp.org #7 ↓1 3 too low 5 
New User Approve 20K+ · 4.3★ (131)
wp.org #4 ↑3 1 too high 6 
Open User Map – Interactive Leaflet Maps 10K+ · 5.0★ (70)
wp.org #5 ↓2 1 too high 7 
Forminator Forms – Contact Form, Payment Form & Custom Form Builder 600K+ · 4.8★ (2143)
wp.org #9 2 too low 8 WPForms – AI Form Builder for WordPress – Contact Forms, Payment Forms, Survey Form, Quiz & More 5M+ · 4.8★ (14387)
wp.org #14 ↓3 6 too low 9 
User Admin Simplifier 10K+ · 5.0★ (31)
wp.org #8 1 too high 10 
Site Kit by Google – Analytics, Search Console, AdSense, Speed 5M+ · 4.2★ (1012)
wp.org #11 1 too low 11 
Code Snippets 1M+ · 4.7★ (510) not PHP-current
wp.org #10 1 too high 12 
Elementor Website Builder – more than just a page builder 10M+ · 4.5★ (7323) not PHP-currentheavy footprint
wp.org #15 ↑2 3 too low 13 
WPCode – Insert Headers and Footers + Custom Code Snippets – WordPress Code Manager 3M+ · 4.9★ (1915)
wp.org #21 ↑1 8 too low 14 
ElementsKit Elementor Addons – Advanced Widgets & Templates Addons for Elementor 1M+ · 4.9★ (2051)
wp.org #22 8 too low 15 
Export and Import Users and Customers 50K+ · 4.8★ (442) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #16 ↑3 1 too low 16 
PublishPress Capabilities: User Role Access Control, Admin Area Permissions 90K+ · 4.7★ (143)
wp.org #20 ↓6 4 too low 17 
User Profile Picture 40K+ · 4.6★ (59)
wp.org #18 ↓3 1 too low 18 
WP Approve User 3K+ · 4.2★ (42)
wp.org #13 ↓1 5 too high 19 
Product Visibility by User Role for WooCommerce 6K+ · 3.8★ (21) thin reviews
wp.org #12 ↑6 7 too high 20 Feedback Button – Jotform 600+ · 4.0★ (3) thin reviews
wp.org #6 ↓1 14 too high 21 
Helpful – Article Feedback Plugin 600+ · 4.4★ (8) thin reviews
wp.org #17 ↑4 4 too high 22 
Simple Feature Requests Free – User Feedback Board 100+ · 4.0★ (10) thin reviews
wp.org #19 ↓6 3 too high 23 
Payment Gateways by User Roles for WooCommerce 2K+ · 5.0★ (4) thin reviews
wp.org #24 ↓8 1 too low 24 
Anyway Feedback 100+ · 4.0★ (3) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews
wp.org #23 1 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.