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

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 “advisor”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 7 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

Team Showcase – Responsive Team Members Grid, Slider & Carousel Plugin shows at wp.org #9 but places #13 on merit, a gap of 4 places. Its 2K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 3.4★ average from 24 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Visualizer – Tables & Charts Manager with Built-in AI Generator places #12 on merit, 4.4★ from 225 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 Security Ninja – WordPress Security & Firewall 7K+ · 4.7★ (101) wp.org #1 2 AI Engine – MCP Server & AI Chatbot for WordPress, with Claude, ChatGPT & Gemini 90K+ · 4.9★ (874) wp.org #2 ↑2 3 Formidable Forms – Contact Form, Survey, Quiz, Payment, Calculator Form & Custom Form Builder 300K+ · 4.8★ (1388) wp.org #3 ↓1 4 All-in-one Sticky Floating Contact Form, Call, Click to Chat, and 50+ Social Icon Tabs – My Sticky Elements 40K+ · 4.9★ (542) wp.org #4 ↓1 5 CartFlows – Funnel Builder & Checkout Plugin for WooCommerce 200K+ · 4.8★ (517) wp.org #5 6 GeoDirectory – WP Business Directory Plugin and Classified Listings Directory 10K+ · 4.8★ (716) wp.org #8 2 too low 7 Team – Team Members Showcase Plugin 10K+ · 4.5★ (67) wp.org #6 ↑1 1 too high 8 WP TripAdvisor Review Slider 8K+ · 4.8★ (135) wp.org #11 3 too low 9 Version Info – Server Health Monitor, PHP & MySQL Version Display, Environment Indicators 10K+ · 5.0★ (15) wp.org #7 ↓1 2 too high 10 Headers Security Advanced & HSTS WP 90K+ · 4.9★ (79) wp.org #14 4 too low 11 WP Maps – Google Maps, OpenStreetMap, Mapbox, Store Locator with Search, Filters & Listings 60K+ · 4.3★ (122) wp.org #13 2 too low 12 Visualizer – Tables & Charts Manager with Built-in AI Generator 20K+ · 4.4★ (225) wp.org #24 12 too low 13 Team Showcase – Responsive Team Members Grid, Slider & Carousel Plugin 2K+ · 3.4★ (24) wp.org #9 4 too high 14 Ultimate Loan & Mortgage Calculator 100+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #10 4 too high 15 IL Privacy & Cookie Consent 200+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #12 3 too high 16 LovedByAI – GEO (Generative Engine Optimization) & AI SEO Plugin: AEO, llms.txt 1K+ · 4.4★ (5) wp.org #22 6 too low 17 Socicon 200+ · 4.0★ (4) wp.org #17 18 CCA Site Health Advisor 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #15 ↑1 3 too high 19 VikWidgetsLoader – Collection of Widgets 1K+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #18 ↑1 1 too high 20 Proactive Site Advisor – Privacy‑First Anomaly Alerts — · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #16 ↓1 4 too high 21 Constant Contact + WooCommerce 1K+ · 1.8★ (10) wp.org #19 ↓1 2 too high 22 PHP Vitals 300+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #20 ↑1 2 too high 23 Divine SIP Calculator 70+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #21 ↓1 2 too high 24 Security Ninja For MainWP 400+ · 5.0★ (1) 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.