wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “alexa widget”

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 “alexa widget”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 6 of the top 20. 7 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 the install base is organic or host-pushed, and its risk of being pulled.

Ranked above its merit

Page Rank Stats for Alexa Google shows at wp.org #9 but places #14 on merit, a gap of 5 places. Its 50+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 1 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

merit plugin signals wp.org

Matomo Analytics – Powerful, Privacy-First Insights for WordPress 100K+ · 4.6★ (178) wp.org #1 2

AMP for WP – Accelerated Mobile Pages 70K+ · 4.4★ (1319) wp.org #3 ↑1 1 too low 3

AMP WP – Google AMP For WordPress 600+ · 4.5★ (55) wp.org #5 2 too low 4

Amazon Pay for WooCommerce 10K+ · 2.5★ (27) low rating, top placement wp.org #2 2 too high 5 W WP WDFY Integration of Wodify 90+ · 5.0★ (3) thin reviews wp.org #4 ↓1 1 too high 6

Catch Web Tools 10K+ · 5.0★ (3) thin reviews wp.org #8 1 too low 8

WP Tracklink 10+ · 0.0★ (0) thin reviews wp.org #6 2 too high 9

MyelophOne Core — · 0.0★ (0) thin reviews wp.org #7 2 too high 10 R Root Relative URLs 5K+ · 2.9★ (20) closure risk thin reviews wp.org #22 12 too low 11 I Igreen Alexa Site Rank 10+ · 5.0★ (2) closure risk thin reviews wp.org #14 3 too low 12 S SEO Stats Widget 70+ · 5.0★ (2) closure risk thin reviews wp.org #15 3 too low 13

Guto Toolkit for Elementor Addons 10+ · 0.0★ (0) thin reviews wp.org #12 1 too high 14

Page Rank Stats for Alexa Google 50+ · 5.0★ (1) closure risk thin reviewsstale but ranked wp.org #9 5 too high 15

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.