wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “username editor”

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

Image Editor by Pixo shows at wp.org #4 but places #18 on merit, a gap of 14 places. Its 700+ installs carry it up the search order; its 3.5★ average from 10 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Temporary Login Without Password places #5 on merit, 5.0★ from 1550 reviews, but shows at wp.org #12. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin signals wp.org

Rank Math SEO – AI SEO Tools to Dominate SEO Rankings 4M+ · 4.8★ (7520) wp.org #1 2

User Profile Builder – Beautiful User Registration Forms, User Profiles & User Role Editor 40K+ · 4.7★ (738) wp.org #2 3

Admin and Site Enhancements (ASE) 200K+ · 5.0★ (423) wp.org #5 2 too low 4

Security Optimizer – The All-In-One Protection Plugin 1M+ · 4.5★ (157) wp.org #3 1 too high 5

Temporary Login Without Password 90K+ · 5.0★ (1550) wp.org #12 ↑3 7 too low 6

Site Reviews 60K+ · 4.9★ (376) wp.org #11 ↓1 5 too low 7

Adminify – White Label, Admin Menu Editor, Login Customizer 6K+ · 4.3★ (109) wp.org #7 ↑2 8

Swift SMTP (formerly Welcome Email Editor) 7K+ · 4.2★ (68) wp.org #6 ↑1 2 too high 9

Floating Chat Widget: Contact Chat Icons, Telegram Chat, Line Messenger, WeChat, Email, SMS, Call Button – Chaty 300K+ · 5.0★ (1244) wp.org #16 7 too low 10

Social Feed Gallery 80K+ · 4.5★ (303) wp.org #13 ↑4 3 too low 11

Maintenance 1M+ · 4.4★ (869) wp.org #14 ↓1 2 too low 13

Security Plugin, Firewall & Malware Scanner with Auto Removal 40K+ · 4.8★ (397) wp.org #22 9 too low 14

Vigilant – 100% Free Security Suite: Firewall, 2FA, Login, Headers, Scanner… 3K+ · 5.0★ (24) thin reviews wp.org #10 ↑2 4 too high 15

WP-Members Membership Plugin 50K+ · 4.6★ (272) wp.org #20 5 too low 16

Admin Bar Editor – Toolbar Customization with User Role based access & Custom menus 3K+ · 4.4★ (24) thin reviews wp.org #8 ↓2 8 too high 17

Easy Social Feed – All In One Social Feed Plugin for WordPress 30K+ · 4.6★ (502) wp.org #24 ↓1 7 too low 18

Image Editor by Pixo 700+ · 3.5★ (10) thin reviews wp.org #4 14 too high 19

Custom Permalinks 100K+ · 4.1★ (116) wp.org #19 ↑1 20

Guest posting / Frontend Posting / Front Editor – WP Front User Submit 100+ · 5.0★ (22) thin reviews wp.org #18 ↑1 2 too high 21

Bulk Edit and Create User Profiles – WP Sheet Editor 1K+ · 5.0★ (19) thin reviews wp.org #17 ↑1 4 too high 22

Blocks for ACF Fields — Display Custom Fields in the Block Editor 2K+ · 4.9★ (13) thin reviews wp.org #15 ↓4 7 too high 23

Advanced IP Blocker 3K+ · 4.9★ (27) wp.org #21 2 too high 24

SMNTCS Disable REST API User Endpoints 8K+ · 5.0★ (2) thin reviews wp.org #23 ↓1 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.