wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “view log of custom roles”
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 “view log of custom roles”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 7 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
REST API Log shows at wp.org #16 but places #23 on merit, a gap of 7 places. Its 5K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 3.6★ average from 24 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
How this rank is calculated
Each plugin's merit score multiplies these inputs together: how recently it was updated, how current its "tested up to" WordPress version is, its install base (log scale, capped at 10 million), its support thread resolution rate, and a rating score. The rating score weights the star average by review volume against a sitewide prior, then scales it by the lower bound of the share of 4 and 5 star reviews. A plugin with 3.7 stars from tens of thousands of reviews can still outscore a 4.9 with a few dozen, because the small sample carries less certainty.
A health factor between 0.4 and 1.15 then adjusts that score for what wp.org's search can't see: PHP fatals or failed activations on a test install, PHP and WordPress compatibility, memory and page-speed footprint, suspicious review patterns, closure risk, and a large install base with very few reviews. Clean, adopted plugins earn a small lift.
A keyword ranking starts from wp.org's search order for the term, weighting each position by 1 divided by its place, then applies the merit correction and health factor above. Relevance to the keyword stays in the result, so the order can differ from the all-categories list on /best, which scores plugins with no search term.
Hover a row to see the main reason for its position.
WP Activity Log 300K+ · 4.7★ (490)
wp.org #1 ↑1 2 
Wordfence Security – Firewall, Malware Scan, and Login Security 5M+ · 4.7★ (5,043)
wp.org #3 wp.org ranks it 1 place below merit 3 
Members – Membership & User Role Editor Plugin 300K+ · 4.9★ (1,281)
wp.org #4 wp.org ranks it 1 place below merit 4 
Activity Log – Monitor User and Agent Changes 200K+ · 4.3★ (74)
wp.org #2 ↓1 wp.org ranks it 2 places above merit 5 
Simple Custom Post Order 300K+ · 4.8★ (588)
wp.org #5 6 
Pods – Custom Content Types and Fields 100K+ · 4.8★ (418)
wp.org #6 7 
Admin and Site Enhancements (ASE) 200K+ · 5.0★ (423)
wp.org #7 8 
Simple History – Track, Log, and Audit WordPress Changes 300K+ · 4.9★ (492)
wp.org #8 9 
User Profile Builder – Beautiful User Registration Forms, User Profiles & User Role Editor 40K+ · 4.7★ (738)
wp.org #9 10 
Post Views Counter 100K+ · 4.9★ (1,238)
wp.org #11 wp.org ranks it 1 place below merit 11 
CMS Tree Page View – Reorder Pages with a Drag-and-Drop Tree 50K+ · 4.9★ (365)
wp.org #13 ↓1 wp.org ranks it 2 places below merit 12 
All-In-One Security (AIOS) – Security and Firewall 1M+ · 4.7★ (1,720)
wp.org #12 ↑1 13 
View Admin As 9K+ · 4.9★ (49)
wp.org #10 wp.org ranks it 3 places above merit 14 
User Registration & Membership – Free & Paid Memberships, Subscriptions, Content Restriction, User Profile, Custom User Registration & Login Builder 50K+ · 4.8★ (832)
wp.org #24 wp.org ranks it 10 places below merit 15 
RegistrationMagic – Custom Registration Forms, User Registration, Payment, and User Login 7K+ · 4.5★ (459)
wp.org #19 wp.org ranks it 4 places below merit 16 
WP Statistics – Simple, privacy-friendly Google Analytics alternative 500K+ · 4.1★ (760)
wp.org #21 wp.org ranks it 5 places below merit 17 
Stream – Activity Log & Audit Trail 70K+ · 4.3★ (76)
wp.org #17 18 
EasyMedia – Increase Media Upload File Size | Role-Based Upload Limit | Increase Execution Time 70K+ · 4.9★ (99)
wp.org #22 wp.org ranks it 4 places below merit 19 
Activity Log Pro – User Activity Log, Audit Log & Security Monitor 400+ · 5.0★ (15) thin reviews
wp.org #15 wp.org ranks it 4 places above merit 20 
Hide Admin Bar Based on User Roles – Disable the WordPress Toolbar by Role or Capability 20K+ · 3.9★ (21) thin reviews
wp.org #14 wp.org ranks it 6 places above merit 21 
Admin Bar Editor – Toolbar Customization with User Role based access & Custom menus 3K+ · 4.4★ (24) thin reviews
wp.org #18 wp.org ranks it 3 places above merit 22 
Page View Count 10K+ · 4.0★ (55)
wp.org #23 wp.org ranks it 1 place below merit 23 R REST API Log 5K+ · 3.6★ (24) thin reviews
wp.org #16 wp.org ranks it 7 places above merit 24 
User Activity Tracking and Log 2K+ · 3.5★ (34)
wp.org #20 wp.org ranks it 4 places above merit Merit ranking caps the install boost at 10M (wp.org leaves it uncapped), replaces the raw star average with a volume-weighted 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.