wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “wp content”
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 content”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 3 of the top 20. 1 plugin is 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 the install base is organic or host-pushed, and its risk of being pulled.
Ranked above its merit
WP Multibyte Patch shows at wp.org #17 but places #24 on merit, a gap of 7 places. Its 1M+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 25 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
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 Super Cache 1M+ · 4.3★ (1346)
wp.org #2 ↑3 3 
WP Content Copy Protection & No Right Click 100K+ · 4.8★ (1139)
wp.org #3 4 
WP STAGING – Backups & Restore, Migration & Clone Plugin – Cloud Backups, Scheduled Backups 100K+ · 4.8★ (2470)
wp.org #4 5 
UpdraftPlus: WP Backup & Migration Plugin 4M+ · 4.8★ (8709)
wp.org #5 ↓3 6 
WP Fastest Cache – WordPress Cache Plugin 1M+ · 4.9★ (4229)
wp.org #6 ↑3 7 
WP-Optimize – Cache, Compress images, Minify & Clean database to boost page speed & performance 1M+ · 4.8★ (2617)
wp.org #7 8 
All-in-One WP Migration and Backup 5M+ · 4.5★ (7676)
wp.org #8 9 
WP 2FA – Two-factor authentication for WordPress 100K+ · 4.7★ (184)
wp.org #9 ↑1 10 
WP Store Locator 40K+ · 4.8★ (312)
wp.org #11 ↑4 1 too low 11 
Pods – Custom Content Types and Fields 100K+ · 4.8★ (418)
wp.org #12 ↑2 1 too low 12 
WP Statistics – Simple, privacy-friendly Google Analytics alternative 500K+ · 4.1★ (758)
wp.org #10 ↑1 2 too high 13 
WP Activity Log 300K+ · 4.7★ (490)
wp.org #14 ↓1 1 too low 14 
Advanced Custom Fields (ACF®) 2M+ · 4.5★ (1440)
wp.org #15 1 too low 15 
WP Reset 300K+ · 4.8★ (1014)
wp.org #21 6 too low 16 
BackWPup – WordPress Backup & Restore Plugin 400K+ · 4.0★ (1323)
wp.org #16 ↑1 17 
WP RSS Aggregator – RSS Import, Feed to Post, Autoblogging, AI Content 40K+ · 4.5★ (565)
wp.org #19 ↓3 2 too low 18 
WP Accessibility 60K+ · 4.8★ (68)
wp.org #13 ↑6 5 too high 19 
WP Mail Logging 300K+ · 4.7★ (375)
wp.org #20 1 too low 20 
Widgets for Google Reviews 1M+ · 4.9★ (2667)
wp.org #23 3 too low 21 
FluentSMTP – WP Mail SMTP Plugin with Amazon SES, SendGrid, Mailgun, Postmark, Cloudflare, toSend, Gmail and Any SMTP 700K+ · 4.8★ (410)
wp.org #22 1 too low 22 
Hide My WP Ghost – Security & Firewall 100K+ · 4.5★ (373)
wp.org #24 2 too low 23 
Passster – Password Protect Pages and Content 10K+ · 4.2★ (60)
wp.org #18 ↓6 5 too high 24 W WP Multibyte Patch 1M+ · 5.0★ (25) host-installed base
wp.org #17 ↑1 7 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.