wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “wordpress stats”

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 stats”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 5 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

WP-Stats shows at wp.org #15 but places #24 on merit, a gap of 9 places. Its 2K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 2.6★ average from 7 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

AI Engine – MCP Server & AI Chatbot for WordPress, with Claude, ChatGPT & Gemini places #11 on merit, 4.9★ from 874 reviews, but shows at wp.org #20. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin signals wp.org

MonsterInsights – Google Analytics Dashboard for WordPress (Website Stats Made Easy) 2M+ · 4.5★ (3157) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #1 2

Site Kit by Google – Analytics, Search Console, AdSense, Speed 5M+ · 4.2★ (1012) wp.org #2 3

Burst Statistics – Simple WordPress Analytics (Google Analytics Alternative) 200K+ · 4.9★ (186) wp.org #3 4

Hustle – Email Marketing, Lead Generation, Optins, Popups 80K+ · 4.4★ (859) wp.org #5 ↓1 1 too low 5

Jetpack – AI Agents & MCP, Security, Backup & Analytics 3M+ · 3.7★ (2408) wp.org #4 ↑3 1 too high 6

Forminator Forms – Contact Form, Payment Form & Custom Form Builder 600K+ · 4.8★ (2144) wp.org #7 ↓2 1 too low 7

Independent Analytics – WordPress Analytics Plugin 100K+ · 4.8★ (167) wp.org #6 1 too high 8

WPForms – AI Form Builder for WordPress – Contact Forms, Payment Forms, Survey Form, Quiz & More 5M+ · 4.8★ (14387) wp.org #10 2 too low 9

WP Server Health Stats 9K+ · 4.8★ (110) wp.org #8 1 too high 10

Simple Blog Stats 4K+ · 4.9★ (38) wp.org #9 1 too high 11

AI Engine – MCP Server & AI Chatbot for WordPress, with Claude, ChatGPT & Gemini 90K+ · 4.9★ (874) wp.org #20 ↓3 9 too low 12

Code Snippets 1M+ · 4.7★ (510) not PHP-current wp.org #12 1 too high 14

StatCounter – Real Time Visitor Stats, Session Replay & Heatmaps 70K+ · 4.2★ (56) wp.org #11 ↓1 3 too high 15

SlimStat Analytics – Real-Time Stats, Heatmaps & Ecommerce 70K+ · 4.8★ (816) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #16 1 too low 16

Simple History – Track, Log, and Audit WordPress Changes 300K+ · 4.9★ (491) wp.org #23 ↓3 7 too low 17

Newsletter – Send awesome emails from WordPress 200K+ · 4.6★ (1205) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #17 ↑7 18

WP Visitor Statistics (Real Time Traffic) 20K+ · 4.5★ (156) wp.org #19 ↓3 1 too low 19

ExactMetrics – Google Analytics Dashboard for WordPress (Website Stats Plugin) 200K+ · 2.5★ (1546) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #13 ↓1 6 too high 20

Connect Matomo – Analytics Dashboard for WordPress 60K+ · 4.5★ (95) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #21 ↓3 1 too low 21

Posts and Users Stats 600+ · 4.5★ (4) thin reviews wp.org #18 ↓4 3 too high 22

Seriously Simple Stats 5K+ · 3.6★ (13) thin reviews wp.org #22 ↓7 23

Hostinger Reach – AI-Powered Email Marketing for WordPress 1M+ · 5.0★ (8) host-installed base thin reviews wp.org #24 ↓3 1 too low 24

WP-Stats 2K+ · 2.6★ (7) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews wp.org #15 ↓2 9 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.