wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “wp user switch”
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 user switch”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 7 of the top 20.
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
Tax Switch for WooCommerce shows at wp.org #13 but places #22 on merit, a gap of 9 places. Its 1K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 27 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 #7 on merit, 4.9★ from 1146 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 
User Switching 200K+ · 4.9★ (238)
wp.org #2 ↑1 3 
WP Store Locator 40K+ · 4.8★ (312)
wp.org #4 ↑3 1 too low 4 
Members – Membership & User Role Editor Plugin 300K+ · 4.9★ (1281)
wp.org #5 1 too low 5 
User Registration & Membership – Free & Paid Memberships, Subscriptions, Content Restriction, User Profile, Custom User Registration & Login Builder 50K+ · 4.8★ (832)
wp.org #6 1 too low 6 
WP Content Copy Protection & No Right Click 100K+ · 4.8★ (1139)
wp.org #8 2 too low 7 WP Encryption: Easy HTTPS / SSL & Free SSL certificate, HTTPS redirect 50K+ · 4.9★ (1146)
wp.org #12 ↑2 5 too low 8 
WP Accessibility 60K+ · 4.8★ (68)
wp.org #7 ↑15 1 too high 9 
Advanced Custom Fields (ACF®) 2M+ · 4.5★ (1440)
wp.org #9 ↑11 10 
WP User Switch 1K+ · 4.1★ (9) thin reviews
wp.org #3 ↑1 7 too high 11 W WP Photo Album Plus 10K+ · 4.7★ (199)
wp.org #15 4 too low 12 
Login as User: See the Site as Any User 30K+ · 4.8★ (41)
wp.org #10 ↑3 2 too high 13 
ProfilePress – Paid Membership, Online Courses (LMS), Ecommerce, User Registration & Login Form, User Profile & Restrict Content 100K+ · 3.1★ (938)
wp.org #11 2 too high 14 
All-In-One Security (AIOS) – Security and Firewall 1M+ · 4.7★ (1720)
wp.org #17 ↓2 3 too low 15 
WP All Import – Drag & Drop Import for CSV, XML, Excel & Google Sheets 100K+ · 4.7★ (1966)
wp.org #23 ↓2 8 too low 16 
BackWPup – WordPress Backup & Restore Plugin 400K+ · 4.0★ (1323)
wp.org #16 17 
WP Umbrella: Security Backup Restore & Monitoring 90K+ · 4.8★ (81)
wp.org #14 ↓2 3 too high 18 
Hide My WP Ghost – Security & Firewall 100K+ · 4.5★ (373)
wp.org #19 1 too low 19 
WP Recipe Maker 50K+ · 5.0★ (356)
wp.org #24 5 too low 20 
WP-Sweep 100K+ · 4.7★ (138)
wp.org #18 ↑1 2 too high 21 
WP-Members Membership Plugin 50K+ · 4.6★ (272)
wp.org #22 1 too low 22 Tax Switch for WooCommerce 1K+ · 5.0★ (27)
wp.org #13 ↓2 9 too high 23 
User Access Manager 10K+ · 4.4★ (112)
wp.org #20 ↓2 3 too high 24 
hCaptcha for WP 70K+ · 4.6★ (88)
wp.org #21 ↓11 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.