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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “behavior tracking”

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 “behavior tracking”, we and wp.org disagree on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 7 of the top 20. 4 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

Enhanced Ecommerce Google Analytics for WooCommerce shows at wp.org #11 but places #19 on merit, a gap of 8 places. Its 1K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 6 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Popup Maker – Boost Sales, Conversions, Optins, Subscribers with the Ultimate WP Popup Builder places #10 on merit, 4.9★ from 4514 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 Pixel Manager for WooCommerce – Conversion Tracking, Google Ads, GA4, TikTok, Dynamic Remarketing 40K+ · 4.9★ (399) wp.org #2 1 too low 2 Opti-Behavior – Self-Hosted Heatmaps, Funnels, A/B Testing & Smart Insights 1K+ · 5.0★ (6) wp.org #1 1 too high 3 Poptin – Email Marketing Automation, Newsletter & Exit Pop Ups, Email Popups 20K+ · 4.9★ (701) wp.org #6 3 too low 4 Order Tracking – WordPress Status Tracking Plugin 3K+ · 4.6★ (73) wp.org #3 1 too high 5 All in One SEO – AI SEO Plugin to Boost SEO Rankings & Traffic (Schema, Local SEO, Sitemap & SEO Insights) 2M+ · 4.7★ (5231) wp.org #5 6 GTM4WP – A Google Tag Manager (GTM) plugin for WordPress 700K+ · 4.5★ (155) wp.org #4 2 too high 7 Analytify – Google Analytics 4 Tracking and Reporting in WordPress 20K+ · 4.7★ (488) wp.org #9 2 too low 8 WP Statistics – Simple, privacy-friendly Google Analytics alternative 500K+ · 4.1★ (758) wp.org #7 1 too high 9 Burst Statistics – Simple WordPress Analytics (Google Analytics Alternative) 200K+ · 4.9★ (186) wp.org #8 1 too high 10 Popup Maker – Boost Sales, Conversions, Optins, Subscribers with the Ultimate WP Popup Builder 600K+ · 4.9★ (4514) wp.org #17 7 too low 11 Limit Login Attempts Security – Login Security, 2FA, Firewall, Brute Force Prevention 1M+ · 4.8★ (1489) wp.org #13 2 too low 12 Depicter — Popup & Slider Builder 70K+ · 4.6★ (236) wp.org #14 2 too low 13 Matomo Analytics – Powerful, Privacy-First Insights for WordPress 100K+ · 4.6★ (178) wp.org #15 2 too low 14 Tracking and Consent Manager – WP Full Picture 3K+ · 5.0★ (21) wp.org #10 4 too high 15 SureContact – Newsletters, Email Marketing, Automation, Revenue Tracking & CRM 10K+ · 4.8★ (21) wp.org #20 5 too low 16 Metricool – Social media and site statistics 90K+ · 4.4★ (23) wp.org #24 8 too low 17 WooCommerce Stripe Payment Gateway 700K+ · 3.1★ (237) wp.org #18 1 too low 18 Beetle Tracking – Cloudflare Zaraz for WooCommerce 200+ · 5.0★ (6) wp.org #16 2 too high 19 Enhanced Ecommerce Google Analytics for WooCommerce 1K+ · 5.0★ (6) wp.org #11 8 too high 20 CallTrackingMetrics 3K+ · 4.0★ (4) wp.org #12 8 too high 21 TrackFree – All-In-One WooCommerce Order Tracking 100+ · 3.6★ (5) wp.org #22 1 too low 22 AI Search Analytics & Tracking 40+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #21 1 too high 23 Sigmize: A/B Testing, Session Recordings, Heatmaps & Revenue Tracking for WooCommerce, SureCart & EDD 5K+ · 3.7★ (3) wp.org #23 24 CF7 Visited Pages URL Tracking 60+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #19 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.