wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “user status”
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 status”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 7 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
ProfilePress – Paid Membership, Online Courses (LMS), Ecommerce, User Registration & Login Form, User Profile & Restrict Content shows at wp.org #13 but places #19 on merit, a gap of 6 places. Its 100K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 3.1★ average from 938 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
Buried gem
User Submitted Posts – Enable Users to Submit Posts from the Front End places #8 on merit, 4.8★ from 913 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.
User Profile Builder – Beautiful User Registration Forms, User Profiles & User Role Editor 40K+ · 4.7★ (738)
wp.org #1 ↑1 2 
Members – Membership & User Role Editor Plugin 300K+ · 4.9★ (1281)
wp.org #2 ↑3 3 
Ultimate Member – User Profile, Registration, Login, Member Directory, Content Restriction & Membership Plugin 200K+ · 4.4★ (1445)
wp.org #3 4 
User Registration & Membership – Free & Paid Memberships, Subscriptions, Content Restriction, User Profile, Custom User Registration & Login Builder 50K+ · 4.8★ (832)
wp.org #4 ↓3 5 
Login as User: See the Site as Any User 30K+ · 4.8★ (41)
wp.org #5 ↑3 6 
User Frontend – Membership, User Registration, User Profile, User Directory & Content Restriction with Frontend Post Submission 20K+ · 4.1★ (537) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #6 7 
WP User Manager – Registration Form, Login Form, User Profile Builder & Member Directory 10K+ · 4.7★ (350) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #7 ↓3 8 User Submitted Posts – Enable Users to Submit Posts from the Front End 10K+ · 4.8★ (913)
wp.org #14 ↓5 6 too low 9 
Wordfence Security – Firewall, Malware Scan, and Login Security 5M+ · 4.7★ (5039) heavy footprint
wp.org #11 ↓4 2 too low 10 
New User Approve 20K+ · 4.3★ (131)
wp.org #10 ↑1 11 
Smart User Slug Hider 2K+ · 4.9★ (55)
wp.org #9 2 too high 12 
Archive Content with Archived Post Status 5K+ · 4.9★ (36)
wp.org #8 ↑9 4 too high 13 
Open User Map – Interactive Leaflet Maps 10K+ · 5.0★ (70)
wp.org #12 1 too high 14 
bbPress 100K+ · 3.9★ (343)
wp.org #17 ↓2 3 too low 15 
ProfileGrid – User Profiles, Groups and Communities 5K+ · 4.6★ (236) not PHP-current
wp.org #18 ↑2 3 too low 16 
Schedule Post Changes With PublishPress Future: Unpublish, Delete, Change Status, Trash, Change Categories 100K+ · 4.5★ (172)
wp.org #21 ↓8 5 too low 17 
Online Active Users 2K+ · 4.7★ (51)
wp.org #15 ↑1 2 too high 18 
Site Kit by Google – Analytics, Search Console, AdSense, Speed 5M+ · 4.2★ (1012)
wp.org #23 ↑1 5 too low 19 ProfilePress – Paid Membership, Online Courses (LMS), Ecommerce, User Registration & Login Form, User Profile & Restrict Content 100K+ · 3.1★ (938) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #13 ↓3 6 too high 20 
User Login History 10K+ · 4.6★ (29) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #16 ↓2 4 too high 21 
Scheduled & Automatic Order Status Controller for WooCommerce 2K+ · 5.0★ (11) thin reviews
wp.org #19 ↓1 2 too high 22 
User Posts Limit 3K+ · 5.0★ (13) thin reviews
wp.org #22 ↓1 23 
Extended Post Status 1K+ · 4.5★ (11) thin reviews
wp.org #20 ↓1 3 too high 24 
WP-Cron Status Checker 5K+ · 3.5★ (8) thin reviews
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.