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

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 “attached”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 12 of the top 20. 2 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.

M

Ranked above its merit

Media Attached Filter shows at wp.org #3 but places #21 on merit, a gap of 18 places. Its 10+ 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

Appointment Hour Booking – Booking Calendar places #11 on merit, 4.9★ from 524 reviews, but shows at wp.org #23. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 DX Delete Attached Media 3K+ · 4.9★ (28) wp.org #1 2 Enable Media Replace 600K+ · 4.4★ (302) wp.org #2 ↓1 3 Customer Reviews for WooCommerce 80K+ · 4.8★ (1539) wp.org #7 ↓2 4 too low 4 bbPress 100K+ · 3.9★ (343) wp.org #4 ↓1 5 Auto Image Attributes From Filename With Bulk Updater (Add Alt Text, Image Title For Image SEO) 100K+ · 4.8★ (93) wp.org #5 ↓1 6 Responsive Lightbox & Gallery 100K+ · 4.9★ (2003) wp.org #13 ↓1 7 too low 7 The SEO Framework – Fast, Automated, Effortless. 200K+ · 4.9★ (380) wp.org #10 3 too low 8 CMB2 300K+ · 5.0★ (91) wp.org #6 2 too high 9 404 to 301 – Redirect Manager, 301 Redirection, 404 Error Logs & 404 Monitoring 100K+ · 4.7★ (321) wp.org #16 7 too low 10 Media Library Assistant 70K+ · 4.8★ (202) wp.org #18 8 too low 11 Appointment Hour Booking – Booking Calendar 10K+ · 4.9★ (524) wp.org #23 12 too low 12 Germanized for WooCommerce 70K+ · 4.8★ (496) wp.org #22 ↓4 10 too low 13 Image Regenerate & Select Crop 7K+ · 4.7★ (58) wp.org #12 ↓1 1 too high 14 Videopack 10K+ · 4.8★ (63) wp.org #14 ↓1 15 Download Attachments 8K+ · 4.5★ (46) wp.org #11 ↓2 4 too high 16 WP-Sweep 100K+ · 4.7★ (138) wp.org #21 ↓1 5 too low 17 A Add Featured Image to RSS Feed 2K+ · 4.3★ (12) wp.org #9 ↓1 8 too high 18 XML Sitemap & Google News 100K+ · 4.4★ (85) wp.org #24 ↓3 6 too low 19 PDF Forms Filler for CF7 3K+ · 4.8★ (13) wp.org #8 ↓1 11 too high 20 P Post Comments as bbPress Topics 300+ · 4.3★ (18) wp.org #17 ↓2 3 too high 21 M Media Attached Filter 10+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #3 ↓1 18 too high 22 Change Username 4K+ · 4.6★ (7) wp.org #20 ↓1 2 too high 23 Export Single Post Page 3K+ · 4.7★ (3) wp.org #15 ↓1 8 too high 24 Gmap Block 10K+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #19 ↓2 5 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.