wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “wpforms css”
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 “wpforms css”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 12 of the top 20. 2 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
Date Time Picker for WPForms shows at wp.org #3 but places #21 on merit, a gap of 18 places. Its 1K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 2 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
Buried gem
Download Monitor places #9 on merit, 4.5★ from 525 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.
WPForms – AI Form Builder for WordPress – Contact Forms, Payment Forms, Survey Form, Quiz & More 5M+ · 4.8★ (14387)
wp.org #1 2 
GSheetConnector – WPForms Google Sheets Connector, Save WPForms Lite & PRO Entries to Database & Sheets 7K+ · 4.6★ (18) thin reviews
wp.org #2 3 
Utimate Kit ( Styler ) for WPForms 20K+ · 4.8★ (114)
wp.org #5 ↓1 2 too low 4 
WP Fastest Cache – WordPress Cache Plugin 1M+ · 4.9★ (4228)
wp.org #8 ↑1 4 too low 5 
Complianz GDPR/CCPA Cookie Consent Banner 1M+ · 4.7★ (1668)
wp.org #7 ↑3 2 too low 6 
WPCode – Insert Headers and Footers + Custom Code Snippets – WordPress Code Manager 3M+ · 4.9★ (1915)
wp.org #10 ↓3 4 too low 7 
Fluent Forms – Customizable Contact Forms, Survey, Quiz, & Conversational Form Builder 800K+ · 4.8★ (807)
wp.org #11 4 too low 8 
Views for WPForms – Display & Edit WPForms Entries on your site frontend 1K+ · 5.0★ (24) thin reviews
wp.org #6 2 too high 9 Download Monitor 80K+ · 4.5★ (525)
wp.org #14 5 too low 10 
CookieYes – Cookie Banner for Cookie Consent (Easy to setup GDPR/CCPA Compliant Cookie Notice) 1M+ · 4.8★ (3236)
wp.org #15 ↑1 5 too low 11 
Image CAPTCHA for Contact Form 7 and WPForms by HookAndHook (DSGVO/GDPR) 70K+ · 4.7★ (49)
wp.org #9 ↓1 2 too high 12 
MC4WP: Mailchimp for WordPress 1M+ · 4.8★ (1497)
wp.org #17 ↑1 5 too low 13 
Ultimate Addons for Elementor – Widgets, Templates, WooCommerce & Header Footer Builder 2M+ · 4.9★ (2528)
wp.org #19 6 too low 14 
Essential Addons for Elementor – Popular Elementor Templates & Widgets 1M+ · 4.9★ (4132) not PHP-current
wp.org #16 ↓1 2 too low 15 
Smash Balloon Social Photo Feed – Easy Social Feeds Plugin 1M+ · 4.9★ (4358)
wp.org #21 ↓4 6 too low 16 
Simple CAPTCHA with Cloudflare Turnstile 200K+ · 4.7★ (262) not PHP-current
wp.org #13 3 too high 17 
Ninja Forms – Contact Form Builder with Calculators, Quizzes, Signatures & AI Form Builder 500K+ · 4.4★ (1397)
wp.org #20 ↑4 3 too low 18 
Contact Form & SMTP Plugin for WordPress by PirateForms 30K+ · 4.7★ (223) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #12 6 too high 19 
Simply Static – The Static Site Generator 30K+ · 4.5★ (195)
wp.org #18 ↑2 1 too high 20 
Kit (formerly ConvertKit) for WPForms 1K+ · 5.0★ (3) thin reviews
wp.org #4 ↑1 16 too high 21 Date Time Picker for WPForms 1K+ · 5.0★ (2) thin reviews
wp.org #3 18 too high 22 
Royal MCP – Secure AI Connector for Claude, ChatGPT & any LLM via MCP 10K+ · 5.0★ (7) thin reviews
wp.org #23 ↓4 1 too low 23 
WPBean Form Popup for WPForms and Contact Form 7 – Create Popup Forms Easily 600+ · 4.2★ (5) thin reviews
wp.org #24 ↓1 1 too low 24 
Ultra Addons for WPForms 100+ · 0.0★ (0) thin reviews
wp.org #22 2 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.