Plugin Pulse Beta
← Rankings

wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “authoring platform”

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 “authoring platform”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 3 of the top 20.

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

Experience API for Sensei LMS by GrassBlade shows at wp.org #8 but places #22 on merit, a gap of 14 places. Its 20+ installs carry it up the search order; its 2.0★ average from 1 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

merit plugin wp.org
1 LifterLMS – WP LMS for eLearning, Online Courses, & Quizzes 10K+ · 4.8★ (393) wp.org #1 2 CLUEVO LMS, E-Learning Platform 400+ · 5.0★ (17) wp.org #5 3 too low 3 Experience API for LearnPress by GrassBlade 200+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #2 1 too high 4 Experience API for TutorLMS by GrassBlade 200+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #3 1 too high 5 Experience API for LifterLMS by Grassblade 100+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #4 1 too high 6 Experience API for MasterStudy by GrassBlade 30+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #6 7 Experience API for WP Courseware by Grassblade 50+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #7 8 Axtolab AI Connector 50+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #10 2 too low 9 AI Authors Studio (AAS) — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #11 2 too low 10 Sikshya LMS – LMS Course Builder, Online Courses & eLearning 10+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #9 1 too high 11 SmartCloud AI-Kit – Chatbot and Semantic Search 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #12 1 too low 12 ASB Smart Flow — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #13 1 too low 13 Sprint Engine — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #14 1 too low 14 Static Cache Wrangler – Headless Assistant — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #15 1 too low 15 Alter Product – 3D Configurator for WooCommerce — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #16 1 too low 16 Raechal SEO Connector — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #17 ↓1 1 too low 17 SmartCloud Agent Composer — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #20 ↓1 3 too low 18 APOC — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #19 ↓1 1 too low 19 LolaCore – AI Admin Agent 20+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #21 ↓1 2 too low 20 MessageSpring Omnichannel — · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #18 ↓1 2 too high 21 L Live Editor File Manager 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #22 ↓1 1 too low 22 Experience API for Sensei LMS by GrassBlade 20+ · 2.0★ (1) wp.org #8 14 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.