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

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

Memberships and User Profiles for WooCommerce – ProfileGrid WooCommerce Integration shows at wp.org #7 but places #16 on merit, a gap of 9 places. Its 300+ 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.

Buried gem

SSL Zen — SSL Certificate Installer & HTTPS Redirects places #5 on merit, 4.9★ from 665 reviews, but shows at wp.org #21. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Charitable – Donation & Fundraising Platform (Donation Forms, Recurring Donations & Fundraising Campaigns) 10K+ · 4.9★ (219) wp.org #1 2 MyRewards 2K+ · 4.7★ (58) wp.org #2 3 Coupon Affiliates – Affiliate Plugin for WooCommerce 5K+ · 4.9★ (77) wp.org #5 2 too low 4 Giveaways and Contests by RafflePress – Get More Website Traffic, Email Subscribers, and Social Followers 20K+ · 3.9★ (43) wp.org #6 2 too low 5 SSL Zen — SSL Certificate Installer & HTTPS Redirects 9K+ · 4.9★ (665) wp.org #21 16 too low 6 theMarketer – Email marketing, Newsletters, Automation & Loyalty for Woocommerce 800+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #3 3 too high 7 SweepWidget – Giveaway, Contest, Sweepstakes, Competition & Photo Contest Plugin 100+ · 4.3★ (14) wp.org #10 3 too low 8 EchoRewards – Refer a Friend Rewards Program for WooCommerce 300+ · 3.9★ (8) wp.org #8 9 WooPayments: Integrated WooCommerce Payments 800K+ · 3.4★ (177) wp.org #20 ↓1 11 too low 10 Brand Ambassador — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #4 6 too high 11 CuratorCrowd Recipe Box 10+ · 5.0★ (6) wp.org #19 ↓1 8 too low 12 Talk2Me – Your AI Voice Ambassador — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #9 3 too high 13 UGCify – UGC for WooCommerce ( Customer Photos, Videos & Visual Reviews ) — · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #15 2 too low 14 AmbassadorHub — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #11 3 too high 15 Avelon Network 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #12 3 too high 16 Memberships and User Profiles for WooCommerce – ProfileGrid WooCommerce Integration 300+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #7 9 too high 17 affilun — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #16 1 too high 18 AFFI – Affiliate Marketing for WooCommerce 10+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #13 5 too high 19 Kukuriya 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #17 ↑3 2 too high 20 Hera Referral Coupon Reports for WooCommerce — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #18 ↓1 2 too high 21 Babelbeez Voice AI — · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #14 7 too high 22 Stock Market Infographics by Simply Wall St 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #24 2 too low 23 Lootly Loyalty & Rewards 10+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #22 1 too high 24 Redeal Plugin 10+ · 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.