wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “wp api”
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 “wp api”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 9 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 Consent API shows at wp.org #3 but places #23 on merit, a gap of 20 places. Its 200K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 2 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
Buried gem
WP Store Locator places #8 on merit, 4.8★ from 312 reviews, but shows at wp.org #12. 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 
WP STAGING – Backups & Restore, Migration & Clone Plugin – Cloud Backups, Scheduled Backups 100K+ · 4.8★ (2470)
wp.org #2 3 
All-in-One WP Migration and Backup 5M+ · 4.5★ (7676)
wp.org #4 ↑2 1 too low 4 
WP Fastest Cache – WordPress Cache Plugin 1M+ · 4.9★ (4228)
wp.org #6 ↑2 2 too low 5 
UpdraftPlus: WP Backup & Migration Plugin 4M+ · 4.8★ (8706)
wp.org #7 ↓2 2 too low 6 
WP Super Cache 1M+ · 4.3★ (1346)
wp.org #5 ↑5 1 too high 7 
WP-Optimize – Cache, Compress images, Minify & Clean database to boost page speed & performance 1M+ · 4.8★ (2617)
wp.org #9 ↓5 2 too low 8 WP Store Locator 40K+ · 4.8★ (312)
wp.org #12 ↑2 4 too low 9 
WP Statistics – Simple, privacy-friendly Google Analytics alternative 500K+ · 4.1★ (759)
wp.org #10 ↑14 1 too low 10 
WP 2FA – Two-factor authentication for WordPress 100K+ · 4.7★ (184)
wp.org #11 ↑11 1 too low 11 
Widgets for Google Reviews 1M+ · 4.9★ (2667)
wp.org #15 4 too low 12 
Disable WP REST API 30K+ · 4.8★ (36)
wp.org #8 ↑3 4 too high 13 
FluentSMTP – WP Mail SMTP Plugin with Amazon SES, SendGrid, Mailgun, Postmark, Cloudflare, toSend, Gmail and Any SMTP 700K+ · 4.8★ (410)
wp.org #14 ↓2 1 too low 14 
WP Reset 300K+ · 4.8★ (1014)
wp.org #20 ↑3 6 too low 15 
WP Crontrol 300K+ · 4.4★ (167)
wp.org #18 3 too low 16 
WP Rollback – Rollback Plugins and Themes 200K+ · 4.9★ (215)
wp.org #24 ↓5 8 too low 17 
JWT Authentication for WP REST APIs 10K+ · 4.4★ (74)
wp.org #19 ↑2 2 too low 18 
BackWPup – WordPress Backup & Restore Plugin 400K+ · 4.0★ (1323) not PHP-current
wp.org #21 3 too low 19 
WP Umbrella: Security Backup Restore & Monitoring 90K+ · 4.8★ (81)
wp.org #22 3 too low 20 
Advanced Custom Fields (ACF®) 2M+ · 4.5★ (1440) heavy footprint
wp.org #23 3 too low 21 
JWT Authentication for WP REST API 60K+ · 4.4★ (53) not PHP-current
wp.org #17 ↓2 4 too high 22 
WP API SwaggerUI 2K+ · 5.0★ (11) thin reviews
wp.org #13 9 too high 23 WP Consent API 200K+ · 5.0★ (2) host-installed base thin reviews
wp.org #3 20 too high 24 
SteadFast API 8K+ · 3.3★ (3) throws errorsnot PHP-current 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.