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

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

Image Ticker Carousel | by Creavi shows at wp.org #9 but places #19 on merit, a gap of 10 places. Its 500+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 3 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Podcast Player – Your Podcasting Companion places #11 on merit, 4.8★ from 113 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 Hello Dolly 600K+ · 4.4★ (177) wp.org #1 2 Core Rollback 20K+ · 4.7★ (16) wp.org #2 ↑1 3 DearFlip – PDF Flipbook, 3D Flipbook, PDF embed, PDF viewer 200K+ · 4.9★ (194) wp.org #5 2 too low 4 Otter Blocks – Gutenberg Blocks, Page Builder for Gutenberg Editor & FSE 300K+ · 4.7★ (251) wp.org #11 7 too low 5 Core Framework 10K+ · 5.0★ (41) wp.org #7 2 too low 6 File Uploads Addon for WooCommerce 4K+ · 3.7★ (27) wp.org #6 7 QR Redirector 4K+ · 4.3★ (11) wp.org #4 3 too high 8 WP Inventory Manager 1K+ · 4.6★ (32) wp.org #8 9 Werk aan de Muur 900+ · 4.5★ (6) wp.org #3 ↓1 6 too high 10 MP3 Audio Player – Music Player, Podcast Player & Radio by Sonaar 20K+ · 4.8★ (302) wp.org #18 8 too low 11 Podcast Player – Your Podcasting Companion 10K+ · 4.8★ (113) wp.org #24 ↓1 13 too low 12 Blog Filter – Post Grid Filter by Category or Tag 7K+ · 4.9★ (81) wp.org #23 ↓2 11 too low 13 Search Analytics for WP – Site Search Tracking 3K+ · 5.0★ (30) wp.org #14 1 too low 14 Bulk Images to Posts 1K+ · 4.8★ (18) wp.org #13 ↓1 1 too high 15 Radius Portfolio – Filterable Grid, Gallery & Slider Portfolio 7K+ · 4.6★ (38) wp.org #22 ↓3 7 too low 16 Multibanco, MB WAY, Credit card, Apple Pay, Google Pay, Payshop, and PIX (ifthenpay) for WooCommerce 8K+ · 5.0★ (21) wp.org #15 1 too high 17 NIF (Num. de Contribuinte Português) for WooCommerce 5K+ · 5.0★ (8) wp.org #10 ↓1 7 too high 18 Product Input Fields for WooCommerce 4K+ · 4.0★ (17) wp.org #12 ↓2 6 too high 19 Image Ticker Carousel | by Creavi 500+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #9 10 too high 20 EU Consumer Rights for WooCommerce – Guarantee Notice, GARAN Label, Withdrawal Button, Right to Repair, Omnibus Price & GPSR 200+ · 5.0★ (5) wp.org #17 3 too high 21 Liza Widget For Spotify and Elementor 1K+ · 4.0★ (8) wp.org #21 ↓5 22 ArtPlacer Widget 100+ · 4.3★ (6) wp.org #19 ↓6 3 too high 23 NextXen Designer – Product Customizer for WooCommerce 60+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #20 ↓5 3 too high 24 Easy p5.js Block 200+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #16 8 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.