wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “wp json”
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 json”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 7 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-PostViews shows at wp.org #10 but places #15 on merit, a gap of 5 places. Its 90K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 4.4★ average from 65 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
Buried gem
SEOPress – AI SEO Plugin & On-site SEO places #11 on merit, 4.8★ from 1267 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.
WP Super Cache 1M+ · 4.3★ (1346)
wp.org #1 ↑1 2 
WP-Optimize – Cache, Compress images, Minify & Clean database to boost page speed & performance 1M+ · 4.8★ (2617)
wp.org #2 ↑1 3 
Hide My WP Ghost – Security & Firewall 100K+ · 4.5★ (373)
wp.org #3 ↑10 4 
WP-Sweep 100K+ · 4.7★ (138)
wp.org #4 ↑1 5 
WP-Polls 40K+ · 4.2★ (136)
wp.org #5 ↑1 6 
WP Recipe Maker 50K+ · 5.0★ (356)
wp.org #9 ↓2 3 too low 7 
WP Mail Logging 300K+ · 4.7★ (375)
wp.org #8 ↑1 1 too low 8 
Get Use APIs – JSON Content Importer 5K+ · 4.9★ (78)
wp.org #6 ↓2 2 too high 9 
WP-PostRatings 20K+ · 4.4★ (178)
wp.org #7 ↑1 2 too high 10 
Super Page Cache – Cloudflare Cache, Page Speed & Core Web Vitals 70K+ · 4.8★ (517)
wp.org #13 ↑5 3 too low 11 SEOPress – AI SEO Plugin & On-site SEO 300K+ · 4.8★ (1267)
wp.org #15 ↓2 4 too low 12 
WP Data Access – App Builder for Tables, Forms, Dashboards, Charts & Maps 10K+ · 4.9★ (88)
wp.org #11 1 too high 13 
Advanced Custom Fields (ACF®) 2M+ · 4.5★ (1440)
wp.org #12 1 too high 14 
WP Hide & Security Enhancer 50K+ · 4.3★ (275)
wp.org #14 ↑10 15 WP-PostViews 90K+ · 4.4★ (65)
wp.org #10 5 too high 16 
Modula Image Gallery – Photo Grid & Video Gallery 100K+ · 4.7★ (616)
wp.org #19 ↓2 3 too low 17 
WP All Import – Drag & Drop Import for CSV, XML, Excel & Google Sheets 100K+ · 4.7★ (1966)
wp.org #23 ↑1 6 too low 18 
WP Job Manager 70K+ · 4.4★ (237)
wp.org #16 ↑1 2 too high 19 
Schema & Structured Data for WP & AMP 100K+ · 4.5★ (252)
wp.org #17 ↓2 2 too high 20 
WP Migrate Lite – Migration Made Easy 200K+ · 4.2★ (318)
wp.org #21 ↓1 1 too low 21 
WP-UserOnline 10K+ · 4.6★ (38)
wp.org #18 ↓3 3 too high 22 
hCaptcha for WP 70K+ · 4.6★ (88)
wp.org #24 ↓6 2 too low 23 
JSON-LD Breadcrumbs 1K+ · 5.0★ (2) thin reviews
wp.org #22 ↓1 1 too high 24 
CloudSecure WP Security 100K+ · 5.0★ (2) host-installed base thin reviews
wp.org #20 ↓9 4 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.