wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “wp editor”
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 editor”, 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
Classic Editor + shows at wp.org #12 but places #20 on merit, a gap of 8 places. Its 30K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 4.9★ average from 31 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 Fastest Cache – WordPress Cache Plugin 1M+ · 4.9★ (4228)
wp.org #2 ↑2 3 
WP Super Cache 1M+ · 4.3★ (1346)
wp.org #3 ↑2 4 
User Role Editor 700K+ · 4.5★ (288)
wp.org #4 ↓1 5 
WP Store Locator 40K+ · 4.8★ (312)
wp.org #6 ↑3 1 too low 6 
WP 2FA – Two-factor authentication for WordPress 100K+ · 4.7★ (184)
wp.org #5 ↑13 1 too high 7 
Members – Membership & User Role Editor Plugin 300K+ · 4.9★ (1281)
wp.org #9 ↑1 2 too low 8 
WP Statistics – Simple, privacy-friendly Google Analytics alternative 500K+ · 4.1★ (758)
wp.org #8 9 
WP Editor 20K+ · 4.5★ (95)
wp.org #7 2 too high 10 
Checkout Field Editor (Checkout Manager) for WooCommerce 400K+ · 4.9★ (1056)
wp.org #13 ↓5 3 too low 11 
Admin Menu Editor 300K+ · 4.6★ (312)
wp.org #11 12 
Kadence Blocks — Page Builder Toolkit for Gutenberg Editor 600K+ · 4.8★ (333) heavy footprint
wp.org #10 ↑4 2 too high 13 
WP Reset 300K+ · 4.8★ (1014)
wp.org #20 ↓4 7 too low 14 
WP Content Copy Protection & No Right Click 100K+ · 4.8★ (1138)
wp.org #22 ↓2 8 too low 15 
WP Activity Log 300K+ · 4.7★ (490)
wp.org #19 ↓13 4 too low 16 
WP Accessibility 60K+ · 4.8★ (68)
wp.org #14 2 too high 17 
Htaccess File Editor – Safely Edit Htaccess File 40K+ · 5.0★ (102)
wp.org #17 ↓4 18 
Advanced Editor Tools 1M+ · 4.5★ (354)
wp.org #15 ↓14 3 too high 19 
WP Crontrol 300K+ · 4.4★ (167)
wp.org #16 ↓4 3 too high 20 Classic Editor + 30K+ · 4.9★ (31)
wp.org #12 ↑7 8 too high 21 
Advanced Custom Fields (ACF®) 2M+ · 4.5★ (1440) heavy footprint
wp.org #18 3 too high 22 
Theme Editor 50K+ · 4.6★ (128)
wp.org #24 ↓7 2 too low 23 
WP Umbrella: Security Backup Restore & Monitoring 90K+ · 4.8★ (81)
wp.org #23 24 
BEAR – Bulk Editor for WooCommerce Professional. AI assistant on board (MCP Server) 30K+ · 4.7★ (228) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #21 ↑3 3 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.