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

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 “appearence”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 13 of the top 20. 5 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

Responsive Testing: simulate different devices shows at wp.org #2 but places #8 on merit, a gap of 6 places. Its 100+ 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

Translate WordPress with GTranslate places #2 on merit, 4.9★ from 4962 reviews, but shows at wp.org #6. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 List category posts 70K+ · 4.7★ (254) wp.org #1 2 Translate WordPress with GTranslate 900K+ · 4.9★ (4962) wp.org #6 4 too low 3 Export Plugins and Templates 1K+ · 4.4★ (12) wp.org #5 2 too low 4 Push Notification for Post and BuddyPress 200+ · 4.7★ (24) wp.org #9 5 too low 5 Slash Admin 500+ · 5.0★ (9) wp.org #11 6 too low 6 bbPress WP Tweaks 1K+ · 4.2★ (11) wp.org #10 4 too low 7 Category and Subcategory List Widget 600+ · 4.5★ (4) wp.org #7 8 Responsive Testing: simulate different devices 100+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #2 6 too high 9 Footer Widget Bundle 100+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #3 6 too high 10 E Easy Waveform Player 100+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #4 6 too high 11 Lumière Movies 30+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #12 1 too low 12 Sendy Widget 600+ · 4.7★ (3) wp.org #15 3 too low 13 Multi Currency, Currency Switcher, Exchange Rates for WooCommerce – Mudra 1K+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #8 5 too high 14 Weather Forecast 30+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #19 5 too low 15 F Fixed Menu Anchor 200+ · 4.0★ (4) wp.org #24 9 too low 16 Uix Page Builder 90+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #13 3 too high 17 B BizCalendar Web 30+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #17 18 Responsive BMI Calculator 40+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #16 2 too high 19 D Dynamic Taxonomy Menu Items 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #18 1 too high 20 WP Author Profile Widget 100+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #14 6 too high 21 Pyts YouTube Subs — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #21 22 azurecurve Get Plugin Info — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #23 1 too low 23 S Simple Pregnancy Calculator 40+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #20 3 too high 24 Aparat Videos RSS Reader | GRAD 50+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #22 2 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.