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

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 “add”, we and wp.org disagree on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 8 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.

A

Ranked above its merit

Add Password Field for Contact Form 7 shows at wp.org #15 but places #22 on merit, a gap of 7 places. Its 3K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 4.6★ average from 5 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Menu Icons by Themeisle – Add Icons to Navigation Menus places #7 on merit, 4.9★ from 851 reviews, but shows at wp.org #11. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 ElementsKit Elementor Addons – Advanced Widgets & Templates Addons for Elementor 1M+ · 4.9★ (2051) wp.org #2 ↑1 1 too low 2 Add to Calendar Button 3K+ · 5.0★ (11) wp.org #1 ↑1 1 too high 3 Essential Addons for Elementor – Popular Elementor Templates & Widgets 1M+ · 4.9★ (4132) wp.org #3 ↑1 4 Ajax add to cart for WooCommerce 10K+ · 4.7★ (78) wp.org #4 ↓3 5 Premium Addons for Elementor – AI-Ready Elementor Addons, Widgets & Templates 600K+ · 4.9★ (1680) wp.org #8 ↑3 3 too low 6 Table Field Add-on for ACF and SCF 50K+ · 4.9★ (60) wp.org #6 7 Menu Icons by Themeisle – Add Icons to Navigation Menus 100K+ · 4.9★ (851) wp.org #11 ↓2 4 too low 8 A Add MIME Types 50K+ · 4.2★ (25) wp.org #5 3 too high 9 AddToAny Share Buttons 300K+ · 4.7★ (1114) wp.org #10 ↓2 1 too low 10 Add Widget After Content 6K+ · 4.7★ (38) wp.org #12 ↓2 2 too low 11 Add Customer for WooCommerce 1K+ · 5.0★ (12) wp.org #13 2 too low 12 WPC AJAX Add to Cart for WooCommerce 10K+ · 4.4★ (18) wp.org #9 ↓2 3 too high 13 Re-Add Text Justify Button 20K+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #7 ↓1 6 too high 14 Add to Cart Redirect for WooCommerce 6K+ · 4.9★ (101) wp.org #22 ↓4 8 too low 15 Contact Form 7 – PayPal & Stripe Add-on 7K+ · 4.2★ (125) wp.org #19 ↓2 4 too low 16 YITH WooCommerce Product Add-Ons 20K+ · 3.7★ (57) wp.org #14 ↓2 2 too high 17 Add Featured Image Column 3K+ · 4.9★ (13) wp.org #21 ↓2 4 too low 18 Custom Add to Cart labels for WooCommerce 5K+ · 3.9★ (14) wp.org #16 ↓2 2 too high 19 Add Any Extension to Pages 2K+ · 5.0★ (6) wp.org #17 ↓1 2 too high 20 Add as Preferred Source on Google 800+ · 5.0★ (5) wp.org #20 ↑3 21 Add From Server Lite 4K+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #18 ↓3 3 too high 22 A Add Password Field for Contact Form 7 3K+ · 4.6★ (5) wp.org #15 ↓2 7 too high 23 WPC Sticky Add To Cart for WooCommerce 2K+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #23 ↓2 24 YITH WooCommerce Brands Add-On 8K+ · 4.0★ (7) wp.org #24 ↓4

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.