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

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 “addtoany”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 12 of the top 19. 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

Easy Critical CSS shows at wp.org #11 but places #19 on merit, a gap of 8 places. Its 70+ installs carry it up the search order; its 1.0★ average from 1 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Professional Social Sharing Buttons, Icons & Related Posts – Shareaholic places #6 on merit, 4.4★ from 1053 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.

merit plugin wp.org
1 AddToAny Share Buttons 300K+ · 4.7★ (1114) wp.org #1 2 Cookie Compliance for WordPress – Cookie Consent, GDPR & CCPA 800K+ · 4.8★ (3026) wp.org #3 1 too low 3 Affiliates 2K+ · 4.5★ (137) wp.org #4 ↑2 1 too low 4 Complianz GDPR/CCPA Cookie Consent Banner 1M+ · 4.7★ (1667) wp.org #8 ↑2 4 too low 5 WP YouTube Lyte 20K+ · 4.8★ (206) wp.org #10 ↑2 5 too low 6 Professional Social Sharing Buttons, Icons & Related Posts – Shareaholic 10K+ · 4.4★ (1053) wp.org #12 ↑3 6 too low 7 E External Links 8K+ · 4.8★ (36) wp.org #16 ↑4 9 too low 8 WP Consent API 200K+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #2 6 too high 9 Termageddon: Cookie Consent & Privacy Compliance 8K+ · 5.0★ (5) wp.org #9 ↑2 10 SKT Cookie Consent 20+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #5 ↑2 5 too high 11 ZA Creative Social Buttons 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #6 ↑2 5 too high 12 J2T Loyalty – Points, Rewards & Referrals for WooCommerce — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #7 ↑2 5 too high 13 S Subscribe Button by AddToAny 900+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #13 ↑4 14 L Lazy Widget Loader 100+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #17 ↑4 3 too low 15 P Plugin Name: 微集分插件 — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #18 ↑4 3 too low 16 BST share iT 10+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #14 ↑4 2 too high 17 M Masdetalles Share — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #19 ↑4 2 too low 18 O Official Markerly Widget 30+ · 3.0★ (2) wp.org #15 ↑4 3 too high 19 Easy Critical CSS 70+ · 1.0★ (1) wp.org #11 ↑2 8 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.