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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “automatic update”

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 “automatic update”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 14 of the top 20. 3 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

Auto Update Post Date shows at wp.org #4 but places #19 on merit, a gap of 15 places. Its 2K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 2 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Yoast SEO – Advanced SEO with real-time guidance and built-in AI places #7 on merit, 4.8★ from 27821 reviews, but shows at wp.org #17. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Easy Updates Manager 300K+ · 4.8★ (726) wp.org #1 2 Companion Auto Update 40K+ · 4.8★ (105) wp.org #3 1 too low 3 Disable Updates – Updates Manager, Disable Automatic Updates, Disable All Updates 9K+ · 4.5★ (24) wp.org #2 1 too high 4 Translate WordPress with GTranslate 900K+ · 4.9★ (4962) wp.org #12 8 too low 5 Wordfence Security – Firewall, Malware Scan, and Login Security 5M+ · 4.7★ (5038) wp.org #11 6 too low 6 UpdraftPlus: WP Backup & Migration Plugin 4M+ · 4.8★ (8706) wp.org #15 9 too low 7 Yoast SEO – Advanced SEO with real-time guidance and built-in AI 10M+ · 4.8★ (27821) wp.org #17 ↑1 10 too low 8 Duplicator – Backups & Migration Plugin – Cloud Backups, Scheduled Backups, & More 1M+ · 4.9★ (4940) wp.org #9 ↓1 1 too low 9 Table of Contents Plus – Automatic Table of Contents for Posts & Pages 200K+ · 4.5★ (187) wp.org #10 1 too low 10 LocoAI – Auto Translate for Loco Translate 70K+ · 4.9★ (642) wp.org #16 6 too low 11 Automatic YouTube Gallery – Embed Auto-Updating YouTube Video Galleries, Feeds, Playlists & Channels 9K+ · 4.8★ (31) wp.org #7 4 too high 12 Rank Math SEO – AI SEO Tools to Dominate SEO Rankings 4M+ · 4.8★ (7520) wp.org #19 ↓3 7 too low 13 U Update Control 4K+ · 4.4★ (17) wp.org #5 8 too high 14 Disable WordPress Update Notifications and auto-update Email Notifications 10K+ · 4.2★ (19) wp.org #6 8 too high 15 Automatic Domain Changer 10K+ · 4.3★ (29) wp.org #8 ↑1 7 too high 16 Disable All WordPress Updates 20K+ · 4.8★ (69) wp.org #13 ↑1 3 too high 17 All in One SEO – AI SEO Plugin to Boost SEO Rankings & Traffic (Schema, Local SEO, Sitemap & SEO Insights) 2M+ · 4.7★ (5231) wp.org #21 ↓2 4 too low 18 Schedule Post Changes With PublishPress Future: Unpublish, Delete, Change Status, Trash, Change Categories 100K+ · 4.5★ (172) wp.org #22 ↓2 4 too low 19 Auto Update Post Date 2K+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #4 15 too high 20 Bulk Price Update for Woocommerce 2K+ · 4.0★ (16) wp.org #20 ↑1 21 Hostinger Tools 3M+ · 3.5★ (40) wp.org #14 ↓1 7 too high 22 Automatic Product Categories for WooCommerce 400+ · 5.0★ (7) wp.org #23 1 too low 23 A Automatic Cache Flusher for W3 Total Cache 4K+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #18 ↓1 5 too high 24 Disable Updates – Selective Update Control 100+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #24

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.