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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “acf sync”

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 “acf sync”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 12 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

WPGraphQL for ACF shows at wp.org #2 but places #17 on merit, a gap of 15 places. Its 10K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 1 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Polylang places #4 on merit, 4.7★ from 3004 reviews, but shows at wp.org #13. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Advanced Custom Fields (ACF®) 2M+ · 4.5★ (1440) wp.org #1 2 Advanced Custom Fields: Extended 100K+ · 4.8★ (132) wp.org #3 1 too low 3 Media Cloud Sync 1K+ · 4.9★ (13) wp.org #4 1 too low 4 Polylang 900K+ · 4.7★ (3004) wp.org #13 9 too low 5 Admin and Site Enhancements (ASE) 200K+ · 5.0★ (423) wp.org #14 9 too low 6 Air WP Sync – Airtable to WordPress 1K+ · 4.8★ (16) wp.org #5 1 too high 7 Advanced Views – Display Framework – Gutenberg/Elementor/Shortcode 3K+ · 4.8★ (36) wp.org #8 ↑4 1 too low 8 FlexStock – Product Stock Sync with Google Sheets for WooCommerce 600+ · 4.5★ (22) wp.org #10 2 too low 9 Product Sync for WooCommerce – Supplier API Import, Dropshipping & Inventory Sync 400+ · 5.0★ (16) wp.org #9 ↓1 10 CF7 Apps – Addons for Contact Form 7 (Honeypot, Database, Redirection, Webhook, etc.) 300K+ · 3.8★ (135) wp.org #12 ↓3 2 too low 11 Object Data Sync for Salesforce Integration with WP, Woo, Gravity, WPForms, Ninja, CF7 & more 100+ · 4.9★ (23) wp.org #18 7 too low 12 WPGet API – Connect to any external REST API 10K+ · 5.0★ (32) wp.org #23 11 too low 13 FuseWP – WordPress User Sync to Email List & Marketing Automation (Mailchimp, Constant Contact, ActiveCampaign etc.) 2K+ · 4.9★ (25) wp.org #20 7 too low 14 WP Sync for Notion – Notion to WordPress 1K+ · 4.6★ (7) wp.org #7 7 too high 15 CiviCRM Profile Sync 500+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #6 9 too high 16 Sync Master Sheet – Product Sync with Google Sheet for WooCommerce 300+ · 5.0★ (7) wp.org #11 5 too high 17 WPGraphQL for ACF 10K+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #2 15 too high 18 Repeaterly – ACF Repeater, Flexible Content & Dynamic Tags for Elementor 600+ · 5.0★ (5) wp.org #15 ↑1 3 too high 19 User Sync for Azure AD / Azure B2C 70+ · 4.5★ (8) wp.org #22 3 too low 20 Captivate Sync 1K+ · 3.2★ (10) wp.org #17 3 too high 21 WP Data Sync 100+ · 3.8★ (5) wp.org #16 ↓1 5 too high 22 BuddyForms Advanced Custom Fields 100+ · 3.3★ (4) wp.org #21 1 too high 23 A Advanced Custom Fields: Image Size Select Field 300+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #19 4 too high 24 Orders Sync to Airtable for WooCommerce 20+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #24 ↓2

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.