wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “wordpress”
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 “wordpress”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 7 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
Easy MCP AI – Connect Claude to WordPress: MCP Server for ChatGPT & AI Agents shows at wp.org #11 but places #21 on merit, a gap of 10 places. Its 30K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 4.9★ average from 16 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
Buried gem
UpdraftPlus: WP Backup & Migration Plugin places #10 on merit, 4.8★ from 8706 reviews, but shows at wp.org #19. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.
Yoast SEO – Advanced SEO with real-time guidance and built-in AI 10M+ · 4.8★ (27821)
wp.org #1 2 
Translate WordPress with GTranslate 900K+ · 4.9★ (4962)
wp.org #2 ↑1 3 
TablePress – Tables in WordPress made easy 600K+ · 5.0★ (4625)
wp.org #3 ↑1 4 
WPForms – AI Form Builder for WordPress – Contact Forms, Payment Forms, Survey Form, Quiz & More 5M+ · 4.8★ (14387)
wp.org #6 ↓1 2 too low 5 
Forminator Forms – Contact Form, Payment Form & Custom Form Builder 600K+ · 4.8★ (2143)
wp.org #7 ↓1 2 too low 6 
MonsterInsights – Google Analytics Dashboard for WordPress (Website Stats Made Easy) 2M+ · 4.5★ (3157) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #4 ↓2 2 too high 7 
BackWPup – WordPress Backup & Restore Plugin 400K+ · 4.0★ (1323) not PHP-current
wp.org #5 ↑2 2 too high 8 
WP Fastest Cache – WordPress Cache Plugin 1M+ · 4.9★ (4228)
wp.org #9 ↑2 1 too low 9 
Burst Statistics – Simple WordPress Analytics (Google Analytics Alternative) 200K+ · 4.9★ (186)
wp.org #8 ↑4 1 too high 10 UpdraftPlus: WP Backup & Migration Plugin 4M+ · 4.8★ (8706)
wp.org #19 ↓4 9 too low 11 
MC4WP: Mailchimp for WordPress 1M+ · 4.8★ (1497)
wp.org #15 ↓2 4 too low 12 
WP 2FA – Two-factor authentication for WordPress 100K+ · 4.7★ (184)
wp.org #13 ↑10 1 too low 13 
WPCode – Insert Headers and Footers + Custom Code Snippets – WordPress Code Manager 3M+ · 4.9★ (1915)
wp.org #16 ↓2 3 too low 14 
Independent Analytics – WordPress Analytics Plugin 100K+ · 4.8★ (167)
wp.org #14 ↑4 15 
AI Engine – MCP Server & AI Chatbot for WordPress, with Claude, ChatGPT & Gemini 90K+ · 4.9★ (874)
wp.org #20 ↓1 5 too low 16 
GTM4WP – A Google Tag Manager (GTM) plugin for WordPress 700K+ · 4.5★ (155)
wp.org #10 ↓2 6 too high 17 
WPVibe – MCP Server for WordPress, works with Claude, ChatGPT & other AI MCP agents 100K+ · 5.0★ (195)
wp.org #17 18 
Hustle – Email Marketing, Lead Generation, Optins, Popups 80K+ · 4.4★ (859)
wp.org #21 ↓1 3 too low 19 
Newsletter – Send awesome emails from WordPress 200K+ · 4.6★ (1205) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #18 1 too high 20 
Filter Everything — WordPress & WooCommerce Filters 50K+ · 4.6★ (154)
wp.org #22 ↓12 2 too low 21 Easy MCP AI – Connect Claude to WordPress: MCP Server for ChatGPT & AI Agents 30K+ · 4.9★ (16) thin reviews
wp.org #11 ↑5 10 too high 22 
WordPress Importer 2M+ · 3.1★ (327)
wp.org #12 ↓2 10 too high 23 
Disable All WordPress Updates 20K+ · 4.8★ (69)
wp.org #23 ↓1 24 
FancyBox for WordPress 30K+ · 4.6★ (92)
wp.org #24 ↓4 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.