Plugin Pulse Beta
← Rankings

wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “activitypub”

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 “activitypub”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 17 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

Mirror Gravatar shows at wp.org #9 but places #16 on merit, a gap of 7 places. Its 20+ 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

Admin Menu Editor places #4 on merit, 4.6★ from 312 reviews, but shows at wp.org #21. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 ActivityPub 6K+ · 4.9★ (40) wp.org #1 2 WP-Optimize – Cache, Compress images, Minify & Clean database to boost page speed & performance 1M+ · 4.8★ (2617) wp.org #18 ↓2 16 too low 3 Friends 900+ · 5.0★ (7) wp.org #4 1 too low 4 Admin Menu Editor 300K+ · 4.6★ (312) wp.org #21 ↓2 17 too low 5 Embed Privacy 10K+ · 4.9★ (26) wp.org #20 ↓3 15 too low 6 WebFinger 1K+ · 3.7★ (3) wp.org #3 3 too high 7 Enable Mastodon Apps 500+ · 4.0★ (6) wp.org #6 1 too high 8 Event Bridge for ActivityPub 70+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #2 6 too high 9 Webmention 900+ · 5.0★ (8) wp.org #23 14 too low 10 NodeInfo(2) 900+ · 4.0★ (1) wp.org #5 5 too high 11 WapuuGotchi 20+ · 5.0★ (5) wp.org #24 ↓3 13 too low 12 Polls For ActivityPub 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #7 5 too high 13 OpenWeb Icons — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #10 3 too high 14 FediBoost 10+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #8 6 too high 15 Heckl Tools — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #11 4 too high 16 Mirror Gravatar 20+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #9 7 too high 17 Post Kinds for IndieWeb in Block Themes 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #12 ↑3 5 too high 18 A Axismundi Object Projections — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #13 5 too high 19 A Axismundi Actors — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #14 ↓2 5 too high 20 Feed Integrator for Loops — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #15 ↓2 5 too high 21 threadi Now Pages — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #16 5 too high 22 A Axismundi Emoji — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #17 ↓3 5 too high 23 ArchivioMD — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #19 ↓1 4 too high 24 sub.club — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #22 ↓2 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.