wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “wordpress backup”
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 backup”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 4 of the top 20. 2 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
Royal WordPress Backup, Restore & Migration Plugin – Backup WordPress Sites Safely shows at wp.org #10 but places #21 on merit, a gap of 11 places. Its 30K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 7 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
Buried gem
JetBackup – Backup, Restore & Migrate places #11 on merit, 4.5★ from 1056 reviews, but shows at wp.org #15. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.
UpdraftPlus: WP Backup & Migration Plugin 4M+ · 4.8★ (8706)
wp.org #1 2 
Duplicator – Backups & Migration Plugin – Cloud Backups, Scheduled Backups, & More 1M+ · 4.9★ (4940) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #2 3 
Yoast SEO – Advanced SEO with real-time guidance and built-in AI 10M+ · 4.8★ (27821)
wp.org #4 ↑1 1 too low 4 
WP STAGING – Backups & Restore, Migration & Clone Plugin – Cloud Backups, Scheduled Backups 100K+ · 4.8★ (2470)
wp.org #5 ↓1 1 too low 5 
BackWPup – WordPress Backup & Restore Plugin 400K+ · 4.0★ (1323) not PHP-current
wp.org #3 2 too high 6 
Backup Migration 80K+ · 4.9★ (1338)
wp.org #7 ↓1 1 too low 7 
WPvivid — Backup, Migration & Staging 900K+ · 4.9★ (1568)
wp.org #8 1 too low 8 
Jetpack – AI Agents & MCP, Security, Backup & Analytics 3M+ · 3.7★ (2408)
wp.org #6 ↑1 2 too high 9 
All-in-One WP Migration and Backup 5M+ · 4.5★ (7676)
wp.org #9 10 
Translate WordPress with GTranslate 900K+ · 4.9★ (4962)
wp.org #12 2 too low 11 JetBackup – Backup, Restore & Migrate 200K+ · 4.5★ (1056)
wp.org #15 ↓1 4 too low 12 
Backuply – Backup, Restore, Migrate and Clone 600K+ · 4.5★ (135)
wp.org #11 ↑4 1 too high 13 
WP Fastest Cache – WordPress Cache Plugin 1M+ · 4.9★ (4228)
wp.org #21 8 too low 14 
BlogVault Backup & Staging 80K+ · 4.6★ (332)
wp.org #18 ↓2 4 too low 15 
Total Upkeep – WordPress Backup Plugin plus Restore & Migrate by BoldGrid 40K+ · 4.8★ (442) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #13 ↓2 2 too high 16 
WP Database Backup – Unlimited Database & Files Backup by Backup for WP 20K+ · 4.5★ (102)
wp.org #14 ↓1 2 too high 17 
WP Umbrella: Security Backup Restore & Monitoring 90K+ · 4.8★ (81)
wp.org #17 ↑1 18 
Wordfence Security – Firewall, Malware Scan, and Login Security 5M+ · 4.7★ (5039) heavy footprint
wp.org #24 ↓1 6 too low 19 
Database Backup for WordPress 60K+ · 4.5★ (66)
wp.org #19 ↓2 20 
Backup, Restore and Migrate your sites with XCloner 10K+ · 4.2★ (129)
wp.org #22 ↓1 2 too low 21 Royal WordPress Backup, Restore & Migration Plugin – Backup WordPress Sites Safely 30K+ · 5.0★ (7) thin reviews
wp.org #10 11 too high 22 
Jetpack VaultPress Backup 20K+ · 4.5★ (35)
wp.org #20 ↓1 2 too high 23 
Everest Backup – WordPress Cloud Backup, Migration, Restore & Cloning Plugin 3K+ · 4.4★ (45)
wp.org #23 ↓1 24 
Backup Bolt – Lightweight Backup, Fast WordPress Backup to ZIP 800+ · 4.7★ (13) thin reviews
wp.org #16 8 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.