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

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 “adjacent”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 11 of the top 20.

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 the install base is organic or host-pushed, and its risk of being pulled.

Ranked above its merit

Gum Addon for Elementor shows at wp.org #3 but places #9 on merit, a gap of 6 places. Its 50K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 0.0★ average from 0 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Elementor Website Builder – more than just a page builder 10M+ · 4.5★ (7322) wp.org #1 2 Falcon – Cache, Performance, Security, Cleanup, and Tweaks 2K+ · 5.0★ (10) wp.org #2 3 Grids: Layout builder for WordPress 2K+ · 5.0★ (21) wp.org #4 1 too low 4 Pattern CSS – The CSS Editor For Blocks 100+ · 5.0★ (8) wp.org #8 ↓1 4 too low 5 Max Addons for Bricks Builder 1K+ · 4.9★ (9) wp.org #11 6 too low 6 Forward: Embed Image Links 100+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #5 1 too high 7 WP Basic Elements 100+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #7 ↓1 8 Live Event Seating Lite – Seating Chart, Floor Plan, RSVP & Event Ticket 40+ · 5.0★ (12) wp.org #17 ↓2 9 too low 9 Gum Addon for Elementor 50K+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #3 6 too high 10 Ultimate WooCommerce Filters 500+ · 3.7★ (14) wp.org #10 11 Set Price Note (Units, Offers, Editions) for WooCommerce 600+ · 4.7★ (3) wp.org #9 2 too high 12 Xtreme Slider (3D Image Slider) 40+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #6 ↑2 6 too high 13 Product Table For WooCommerce 500+ · 5.0★ (6) wp.org #18 ↓2 5 too low 14 The Off Switch (formerly WP Avoid Slow) 200+ · 5.0★ (6) wp.org #19 5 too low 15 MysteryThemes Toolkit 200+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #14 ↓1 1 too high 16 SheetMirror for Google Sheets 20+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #23 ↓2 7 too low 17 WP Contact Form 7 DB Handler 100+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #12 ↓1 5 too high 18 16Deza Table Cell Extras 70+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #16 ↓2 2 too high 19 U2Code Product Multicurrency for WooCommerce 40+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #13 6 too high 20 TrimPress 100+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #15 ↓3 5 too high 21 Head Trimmer 20+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #21 ↓3 22 S Site Cleanup Controls 40+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #22 ↓2 23 Wowholic CORE 60+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #24 ↓2 1 too low 24 StoreDisplay – Product Display Layouts for WooCommerce 100+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #20 ↓3 4 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.