wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “website”
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 “website”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 10 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
Kadence Starter Templates — Predesigned Website Templates shows at wp.org #14 but places #21 on merit, a gap of 7 places. Its 200K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 4.3★ average from 19 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
Buried gem
UpdraftPlus: WP Backup & Migration Plugin places #6 on merit, 4.8★ from 8706 reviews, but shows at wp.org #11. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.
Elementor Website Builder – more than just a page builder 10M+ · 4.5★ (7323) not PHP-currentheavy footprint
wp.org #1 2 
MonsterInsights – Google Analytics Dashboard for WordPress (Website Stats Made Easy) 2M+ · 4.5★ (3157) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #2 3 
Starter Templates: AI-Powered Website Templates for Elementor & Gutenberg 1M+ · 4.9★ (4755)
wp.org #4 1 too low 4 
Jetpack Boost – Website Speed, Performance and Critical CSS 200K+ · 4.7★ (612)
wp.org #6 2 too low 5 
Website Builder by SeedProd — Theme Builder, Landing Page Builder, Coming Soon Page, Maintenance Mode 600K+ · 4.9★ (4699)
wp.org #9 4 too low 6 UpdraftPlus: WP Backup & Migration Plugin 4M+ · 4.8★ (8706)
wp.org #11 5 too low 7 
Meta Box – A Framework for Dynamic Websites 500K+ · 4.8★ (165)
wp.org #7 ↑1 8 
Website LLMs.txt 50K+ · 4.7★ (12) thin reviews
wp.org #3 5 too high 9 
Beaver Builder Page Builder – Drag and Drop Website Builder 100K+ · 4.7★ (394)
wp.org #10 ↑2 1 too low 10 
Spectra Blocks – AI Website Builder for the Block Editor 60K+ · 4.6★ (53) heavy footprint
wp.org #5 5 too high 11 
Wordfence Security – Firewall, Malware Scan, and Login Security 5M+ · 4.7★ (5039) heavy footprint
wp.org #13 2 too low 12 
Kirki – Freeform Page Builder, Website Builder & Customizer 500K+ · 4.5★ (81)
wp.org #8 ↓1 4 too high 13 
Anti-Spam, Spam FireWall by CleanTalk 200K+ · 4.8★ (3220)
wp.org #24 ↓2 11 too low 14 
Complianz GDPR/CCPA Cookie Consent Banner 1M+ · 4.7★ (1668)
wp.org #19 5 too low 15 
10Web Booster – Website speed optimization, Cache & Page Speed optimizer 60K+ · 4.6★ (405)
wp.org #21 6 too low 16 
Visual Composer Website Builder 30K+ · 4.6★ (220) heavy footprint
wp.org #16 17 
Prisna GWT – Google Website Translator 8K+ · 4.5★ (54)
wp.org #12 ↓2 5 too high 18 
WP Meteor Website Speed Optimization Addon 20K+ · 4.7★ (77)
wp.org #18 ↑1 19 
Page Builder: Pagelayer – Drag and Drop website builder 400K+ · 3.9★ (104)
wp.org #15 4 too high 20 
Nexter Blocks – Gutenberg Blocks, Page Builder & AI Website Builder 9K+ · 4.8★ (90) heavy footprint
wp.org #20 21 Kadence Starter Templates — Predesigned Website Templates 200K+ · 4.3★ (19) host-installed base thin reviews
wp.org #14 7 too high 22 
ExactMetrics – Google Analytics Dashboard for WordPress (Website Stats Plugin) 200K+ · 2.5★ (1546) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #23 ↓6 1 too low 23 
CopyProof Website 300+ · 4.4★ (7) thin reviews
wp.org #22 ↓1 1 too high 24 
Website Open/Closed Toggle 500+ · 5.0★ (1) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews
wp.org #17 ↑1 7 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.