wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “verified author”
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 “verified author”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 14 of the top 20. 3 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
Author Box & Pages for E-E-A-T Optimization shows at wp.org #5 but places #22 on merit, a gap of 17 places. Its 200+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 2 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
Buried gem
Customer Reviews for WooCommerce places #7 on merit, 4.8★ from 1539 reviews, but shows at wp.org #16. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.
Forminator Forms – Contact Form, Payment Form & Custom Form Builder 600K+ · 4.8★ (2144)
wp.org #1 2 
Ultimate Member – User Profile, Registration, Login, Member Directory, Content Restriction & Membership Plugin 200K+ · 4.4★ (1445)
wp.org #2 3 
WPForms – AI Form Builder for WordPress – Contact Forms, Payment Forms, Survey Form, Quiz & More 5M+ · 4.8★ (14387)
wp.org #3 4 
WPCode – Insert Headers and Footers + Custom Code Snippets – WordPress Code Manager 3M+ · 4.9★ (1916)
wp.org #8 4 too low 5 
UsersWP – Front-end login form, User Registration, User Profile & Members Directory plugin for WP 20K+ · 4.7★ (183)
wp.org #9 4 too low 6 
Verified Member for BuddyPress 2K+ · 4.7★ (15) thin reviews
wp.org #4 2 too high 7 Customer Reviews for WooCommerce 80K+ · 4.8★ (1539)
wp.org #16 9 too low 8 
Weight Based Shipping Table Rate for WooCommerce – Flexible Shipping 100K+ · 4.9★ (706)
wp.org #15 7 too low 9 
Essential Addons for Elementor – Popular Elementor Templates & Widgets 1M+ · 4.9★ (4132) not PHP-current
wp.org #13 4 too low 10 
Vigilant – 100% Free Security Suite: Firewall, 2FA, Login, Headers, Scanner… 3K+ · 5.0★ (24) thin reviews
wp.org #7 3 too high 11 
WP About Author 500+ · 4.5★ (17) thin reviews
wp.org #6 5 too high 12 
Customer Email Verification for WooCommerce 8K+ · 4.8★ (47)
wp.org #12 13 
EasyMedia – Increase Media Upload File Size | Role-Based Upload Limit | Increase Execution Time 70K+ · 4.9★ (99)
wp.org #18 5 too low 14 
Charitable – Donation & Fundraising Platform (Donation Forms, Recurring Donations & Fundraising Campaigns) 10K+ · 4.9★ (219) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #17 3 too low 15 
Youzify – BuddyPress Community, User Profile, Social Network & Membership Plugin for WordPress 5K+ · 4.8★ (194)
wp.org #24 9 too low 16 
The SEO Framework – Fast, Automated, Effortless. 200K+ · 4.9★ (380) not PHP-current
wp.org #23 7 too low 17 
ActivityPub 6K+ · 4.9★ (40) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #11 6 too high 18 
W4 Post List 3K+ · 4.7★ (94)
wp.org #22 4 too low 19 
MonsterInsights – Google Analytics Dashboard for WordPress (Website Stats Made Easy) 2M+ · 4.5★ (3157) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #20 1 too low 20 
Revopic – Photo Reviews for WooCommerce 10K+ · 4.7★ (77) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #14 6 too high 21 
Atlant Security 700+ · 5.0★ (8) thin reviews
wp.org #10 11 too high 22 Author Box & Pages for E-E-A-T Optimization 200+ · 5.0★ (2) thin reviews
wp.org #5 17 too high 23 
OpenPorte Spam Protection 500+ · 5.0★ (5) thin reviews
wp.org #19 4 too high 24 
Gravatar Enhanced – Avatars, Profiles, and Privacy 100K+ · 5.0★ (3) host-installed base thin reviews
wp.org #21 3 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.