wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “wp logging”
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 logging”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 7 of the top 20. 4 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 Photo Album Plus shows at wp.org #10 but places #15 on merit, a gap of 5 places. Its 10K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 4.7★ average from 199 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
Buried gem
WP Encryption: Easy HTTPS / SSL & Free SSL certificate, HTTPS redirect places #10 on merit, 4.9★ from 1146 reviews, but shows at wp.org #14. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.
WP Mail Logging 300K+ · 4.7★ (375)
wp.org #1 2 
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 #2 3 
WP STAGING – Backups & Restore, Migration & Clone Plugin – Cloud Backups, Scheduled Backups 100K+ · 4.8★ (2470)
wp.org #3 ↓1 4 
WP-Optimize – Cache, Compress images, Minify & Clean database to boost page speed & performance 1M+ · 4.8★ (2617)
wp.org #4 5 
Mail logging & Catcher 20K+ · 4.9★ (108)
wp.org #5 ↓1 6 
FluentSMTP – WP Mail SMTP Plugin with Amazon SES, SendGrid, Mailgun, Postmark, Cloudflare, toSend, Gmail and Any SMTP 700K+ · 4.8★ (410)
wp.org #6 ↓1 7 
WP Activity Log 300K+ · 4.7★ (490)
wp.org #7 ↓4 8 
WP Content Copy Protection & No Right Click 100K+ · 4.8★ (1138)
wp.org #11 ↓3 3 too low 9 
WP Rollback – Rollback Plugins and Themes 200K+ · 4.9★ (215)
wp.org #9 ↓2 10 WP Encryption: Easy HTTPS / SSL & Free SSL certificate, HTTPS redirect 50K+ · 4.9★ (1146)
wp.org #14 ↓2 4 too low 11 
WP Crontrol 300K+ · 4.4★ (167)
wp.org #8 ↓2 3 too high 12 
Easy WP SMTP – WordPress SMTP and Email Logs: Gmail SMTP, Office 365, Outlook, Custom SMTP, and more 500K+ · 4.6★ (709)
wp.org #12 ↓3 13 
Hide My WP Ghost – Security & Firewall 100K+ · 4.5★ (373)
wp.org #13 ↑1 14 
Wordfence Security – Firewall, Malware Scan, and Login Security 5M+ · 4.7★ (5039) heavy footprint
wp.org #15 1 too low 15 W WP Photo Album Plus 10K+ · 4.7★ (199) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #10 5 too high 16 
WP ULike – Like Buttons, Voting & Engagement Analytics 60K+ · 4.8★ (283)
wp.org #19 ↓1 3 too low 17 
Kadence Security – Password, Two Factor Authentication, and Brute Force Protection 700K+ · 4.6★ (3992)
wp.org #24 7 too low 18 
All-In-One Security (AIOS) – Security and Firewall 1M+ · 4.7★ (1720)
wp.org #23 5 too low 19 
WP Event Manager – Events Calendar, Registrations, Sell Tickets with WooCommerce 20K+ · 4.0★ (249)
wp.org #18 ↓2 1 too high 20 
WP-Polls 40K+ · 4.2★ (136)
wp.org #17 3 too high 21 
Check & Log Email – Easy Email Testing & Mail logging 90K+ · 4.8★ (292) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #16 ↓5 5 too high 22 
WP-PostRatings 20K+ · 4.4★ (178)
wp.org #20 ↓1 2 too high 23 
PDF Invoices & Packing Slips for WooCommerce 300K+ · 5.0★ (1865) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #22 ↓7 1 too high 24 
Simple CAPTCHA with Cloudflare Turnstile 200K+ · 4.7★ (262) not PHP-current
wp.org #21 ↓8 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.