Plugin Pulse Beta
← Rankings

wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “author list”

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 “author list”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 10 of the top 20. 1 plugin is 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

Hide Author Archive shows at wp.org #14 but places #24 on merit, a gap of 10 places. Its 600+ 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

All in One SEO – AI SEO Plugin to Boost SEO Rankings & Traffic (Schema, Local SEO, Sitemap & SEO Insights) places #11 on merit, 4.7★ from 5231 reviews, but shows at wp.org #20. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Co-Authors, Multiple Authors and Guest Authors in an Author Box with PublishPress Authors 20K+ · 4.9★ (114) wp.org #1 2 P Page-list 30K+ · 4.7★ (89) wp.org #2 3 List category posts 80K+ · 4.7★ (254) wp.org #6 ↑1 3 too low 4 Simple Author Box 90K+ · 4.3★ (115) wp.org #3 1 too high 5 Author Avatars List/Block 4K+ · 4.8★ (32) wp.org #4 1 too high 6 Molongui Authorship – Author Boxes, Guest Authors & Co-Authors for WordPress 10K+ · 4.7★ (158) wp.org #8 ↓3 2 too low 7 Authors List 5K+ · 5.0★ (22) wp.org #5 ↑1 2 too high 8 W4 Post List 3K+ · 4.7★ (94) wp.org #9 1 too low 9 Elementor Website Builder – more than just a page builder 10M+ · 4.5★ (7323) wp.org #12 3 too low 10 WP Post Author – Author Box, Multiple Authors, Guest Authors & Custom Avatars 10K+ · 4.2★ (22) wp.org #7 ↑1 3 too high 11 All in One SEO – AI SEO Plugin to Boost SEO Rankings & Traffic (Schema, Local SEO, Sitemap & SEO Insights) 2M+ · 4.7★ (5231) wp.org #20 9 too low 12 Ultimate Post List 2K+ · 4.6★ (13) wp.org #13 1 too low 13 ( (Simply) Guest Author Name 2K+ · 4.7★ (23) wp.org #17 4 too low 14 12 Step Meeting List 900+ · 5.0★ (28) wp.org #22 8 too low 15 Plugins List 700+ · 5.0★ (12) wp.org #15 16 Co-Authors Plus 20K+ · 3.5★ (77) wp.org #19 3 too low 17 VK Post Author Display 10K+ · 4.5★ (8) wp.org #11 6 too high 18 D Disable Author Archives 10K+ · 4.4★ (7) wp.org #10 8 too high 19 List Last Changes 1K+ · 4.8★ (11) wp.org #16 3 too high 20 List all posts by Authors, nested Categories and Titles 600+ · 5.0★ (10) wp.org #18 2 too high 21 Post List Designer – Category Post, Recent Post, Post List 1K+ · 4.5★ (8) wp.org #21 22 About Author 200+ · 4.4★ (5) wp.org #23 1 too low 23 List Child Pages Shortcode 600+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #24 1 too low 24 Hide Author Archive 600+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #14 10 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.