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

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 post”, we agree with wp.org 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.

Ranked above its merit

Gum Addon for Elementor shows at wp.org #7 but places #17 on merit, a gap of 10 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.

Buried gem

Stackable – Page Builder Gutenberg Blocks places #10 on merit, 4.9★ from 522 reviews, but shows at wp.org #24. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Elementor Website Builder – more than just a page builder 10M+ · 4.5★ (7322) wp.org #1 2 Simple Custom Post Order 300K+ · 4.8★ (588) wp.org #2 3 Falcon – Cache, Performance, Security, Cleanup, and Tweaks 2K+ · 5.0★ (10) wp.org #3 4 Express, Certified Post, Bike Delivery and Iranian Postal Companies for WooCommerce 1K+ · 4.1★ (16) wp.org #4 5 Better Messages – Chat Rooms, Group Chat, Private Messages & AI Chat Bots 10K+ · 4.8★ (142) wp.org #15 10 too low 6 PowerPack Addons for Elementor: Widgets, Form Styler and Templates 70K+ · 4.8★ (361) wp.org #19 13 too low 7 Broken Link Checker 500K+ · 3.8★ (605) wp.org #8 1 too low 8 Max Addons for Bricks Builder 1K+ · 4.9★ (9) wp.org #6 2 too high 9 Grids: Layout builder for WordPress 2K+ · 5.0★ (21) wp.org #10 1 too low 10 Stackable – Page Builder Gutenberg Blocks 100K+ · 4.9★ (522) wp.org #24 14 too low 11 WP Basic Elements 100+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #5 6 too high 12 Pattern CSS – The CSS Editor For Blocks 100+ · 5.0★ (8) wp.org #13 1 too low 13 The Off Switch (formerly WP Avoid Slow) 200+ · 5.0★ (6) wp.org #12 ↑2 1 too high 14 VK Blocks 100K+ · 4.8★ (6) wp.org #14 ↓2 15 Forward: Embed Image Links 100+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #9 6 too high 16 Save & Go 200+ · 5.0★ (5) wp.org #21 5 too low 17 Gum Addon for Elementor 50K+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #7 10 too high 18 TrimPress 100+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #11 7 too high 19 TIP Next Post 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #16 3 too high 20 S Site Cleanup Controls 40+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #18 2 too high 21 MysteryThemes Toolkit 200+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #20 1 too high 22 WP Contact Form 7 DB Handler 100+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #17 5 too high 23 Mxwlsoft Editor Post Navigator — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #22 1 too high 24 Header Junk Remover 20+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #23 1 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.