wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “weekly”
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 “weekly”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 5 of the top 20. 4 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
CF7 Apps – Addons for Contact Form 7 (Honeypot, Database, Redirection, Webhook, etc.) shows at wp.org #11 but places #20 on merit, a gap of 9 places. Its 300K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 3.8★ average from 135 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
Buried gem
Post Views Counter places #9 on merit, 4.9★ from 1236 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.
WP Mail SMTP by WPForms – SMTP for Reliable Email Delivery with Gmail, Outlook, Amazon SES, Brevo, Other SMTP & More 4M+ · 4.8★ (5209)
wp.org #1 2 
UpdraftPlus: WP Backup & Migration Plugin 4M+ · 4.8★ (8706)
wp.org #2 3 
WPvivid — Backup, Migration & Staging 900K+ · 4.9★ (1568)
wp.org #4 ↓1 1 too low 4 
Security Optimizer – The All-In-One Protection Plugin 1M+ · 4.5★ (157)
wp.org #3 ↑1 1 too high 5 
WPForms – AI Form Builder for WordPress – Contact Forms, Payment Forms, Survey Form, Quiz & More 5M+ · 4.8★ (14387)
wp.org #7 ↑2 2 too low 6 
WP-Optimize – Cache, Compress images, Minify & Clean database to boost page speed & performance 1M+ · 4.8★ (2617)
wp.org #6 ↑1 7 
BackWPup – WordPress Backup & Restore Plugin 400K+ · 4.0★ (1323) not PHP-current
wp.org #5 ↑1 2 too high 8 
Post SMTP – Complete Email Delivery and SMTP Solution with Email Logs, Alerts, Backup SMTP & Mobile App 300K+ · 4.7★ (528)
wp.org #9 ↓4 1 too low 9 Post Views Counter 100K+ · 4.9★ (1236)
wp.org #14 5 too low 10 
Duplicator – Backups & Migration Plugin – Cloud Backups, Scheduled Backups, & More 1M+ · 4.9★ (4940) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #8 ↑2 2 too high 11 
Simple History – Track, Log, and Audit WordPress Changes 300K+ · 4.9★ (491)
wp.org #12 1 too low 12 
All-in-One WP Migration and Backup 5M+ · 4.5★ (7676)
wp.org #13 ↑1 1 too low 13 
Ultra Addons for Contact Form 7 60K+ · 4.8★ (107)
wp.org #10 ↑3 3 too high 14 
Custom Twitter Feeds – A Tweets Widget or X Feed Widget 100K+ · 4.8★ (401)
wp.org #16 ↓1 2 too low 15 
Super Page Cache – Cloudflare Cache, Page Speed & Core Web Vitals 70K+ · 4.8★ (517)
wp.org #18 ↑1 3 too low 16 
All-In-One Security (AIOS) – Security and Firewall 1M+ · 4.7★ (1720)
wp.org #17 ↓1 1 too low 17 
Easy Updates Manager 300K+ · 4.8★ (726)
wp.org #19 ↓2 2 too low 18 
Independent Analytics – WordPress Analytics Plugin 100K+ · 4.8★ (167)
wp.org #23 5 too low 19 
Backuply – Backup, Restore, Migrate and Clone 600K+ · 4.5★ (135)
wp.org #20 1 too low 20 CF7 Apps – Addons for Contact Form 7 (Honeypot, Database, Redirection, Webhook, etc.) 300K+ · 3.8★ (135) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #11 ↓3 9 too high 21 
Responsive Mortgage Calculator 7K+ · 4.4★ (21) thin reviews
wp.org #15 6 too high 22 
Salon Booking System – Appointment Booking for Salons, Barbershops & Spas 2K+ · 4.4★ (187) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #21 ↓3 1 too high 23 
Vigilant – 100% Free Security Suite: Firewall, 2FA, Login, Headers, Scanner… 3K+ · 5.0★ (24) thin reviews
wp.org #22 ↑1 1 too high 24 
Sales Report for WooCommerce 1K+ · 4.8★ (12) throws errorsnot PHP-current 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.