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

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

2ConnectMe – Video Chat, Screen Share & Stripe Payments shows at wp.org #11 but places #20 on merit, a gap of 9 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.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Reviews and Rating – Google Reviews 20K+ · 4.9★ (184) wp.org #1 2 Ever Accounting – Accounting & Invoicing Solution for Small Businesses 1K+ · 4.8★ (24) wp.org #2 3 Project Manager – AI Powered Project Management, Task Management, Kanban Board & Time Tracker 5K+ · 3.8★ (187) wp.org #4 1 too low 4 Easy Invoice – Invoice Generator, PDF Quotes & Payments 600+ · 4.4★ (7) wp.org #3 1 too high 5 Devlapse Time Logging — · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #9 4 too low 6 Ndizi Project Management 10+ · 3.5★ (4) wp.org #7 1 too low 7 SummarAIze 50+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #5 2 too high 8 GemBooking – Appointment Booking, Booking Calendar & Reservations 200+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #6 2 too high 9 TimeGuard – Freelancer Time Log Pro — · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #8 1 too high 10 Time Tracker 30+ · 4.3★ (3) wp.org #10 11 CalcularIA Lite — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #13 ↑1 2 too low 12 Albertoit Law Office Manager — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #14 ↑1 2 too low 13 Alt Text Pro – AI Alt Text Generator 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #15 ↓3 2 too low 14 Dr. Speed: AI Assets Scanner – Debloat & Dequeue Unused CSS/JS — · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #12 ↑1 2 too high 15 Karks CRM — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #16 1 too low 16 PhilDesigns Clean Invoices — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #17 1 too low 17 WPC Dimensly – Measurement Price Calculator for WooCommerce — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #18 1 too low 18 LolaCore for FSE 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #19 1 too low 19 Sole Engine – AI LLM Provider — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #20 1 too low 20 2ConnectMe – Video Chat, Screen Share & Stripe Payments 10+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #11 9 too high 21 Contract Pilot — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #21 ↓1 22 AI Chatbot & Customer Service Agent by ReadyHT — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #22 ↓1 23 LogWatch — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #23 ↓1 24 SnippetGrove – AI SEO Metadata — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #24 ↓1

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.