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

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 “board”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 7 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

Nonprofit Board Management shows at wp.org #13 but places #22 on merit, a gap of 9 places. Its 100+ installs carry it up the search order; its 3.7★ average from 3 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

HivePress – Business Directory, Listings & Classified Ads Plugin places #12 on merit, 4.9★ from 221 reviews, but shows at wp.org #22. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Simple Job Board 10K+ · 4.7★ (133) wp.org #1 2 Ultimate Member – User Profile, Registration, Login, Member Directory, Content Restriction & Membership Plugin 200K+ · 4.4★ (1445) wp.org #3 1 too low 3 Discussion Board – WordPress Forum Plugin 1K+ · 4.6★ (43) wp.org #2 1 too high 4 PublishPress Planner – Editorial Calendar, Marketing Content, Kanban Board 6K+ · 4.9★ (178) wp.org #4 ↑1 5 BEAR – Bulk Editor for WooCommerce Professional. AI assistant on board (MCP Server) 30K+ · 4.7★ (228) wp.org #6 1 too low 6 GeoDirectory – WP Business Directory Plugin and Classified Listings Directory 10K+ · 4.8★ (716) wp.org #14 ↓1 8 too low 7 FluentBoards – Project Management, Task Management, Goal Tracking, Kanban Board, and, Team Collaboration 6K+ · 5.0★ (25) wp.org #7 8 WP Job Manager 70K+ · 4.4★ (237) wp.org #15 ↓6 7 too low 9 WP Job Portal – AI-Powered Recruitment System for Company or Job Board website 8K+ · 4.3★ (32) wp.org #8 ↑4 1 too high 10 Project Manager – AI Powered Project Management, Task Management, Kanban Board & Time Tracker 5K+ · 3.8★ (187) wp.org #11 ↓1 1 too low 11 JobWP – Job Board Plugin for WordPress | Job Listings, Career Page & Applications 1K+ · 5.0★ (20) wp.org #9 ↑5 2 too high 12 HivePress – Business Directory, Listings & Classified Ads Plugin 10K+ · 4.9★ (221) wp.org #22 10 too low 13 Mang Board 8K+ · 3.7★ (15) wp.org #5 ↓1 8 too high 14 bbPress 100K+ · 3.9★ (343) wp.org #18 4 too low 15 JobBoardWP – Job Board Listings and Submissions 900+ · 5.0★ (10) wp.org #10 ↓2 5 too high 16 Events Manager – Calendar, Bookings, Tickets, Appointments and more! 60K+ · 4.2★ (551) wp.org #24 ↓1 8 too low 17 easy.jobs – AI powered Job Listing, Job Board, Career Page, Recruitment & Hiring Solution 4K+ · 4.7★ (26) wp.org #16 ↓1 1 too high 18 GS Pinterest Portfolio – Pins Grid, Masonry, User Profile, Popup & Board Widgets 1K+ · 4.8★ (47) wp.org #17 1 too high 19 Job Manager & Career – Manage job board listings, and recruitments 1K+ · 4.7★ (7) wp.org #12 ↓1 7 too high 20 Taskbuilder – Project Management & Task Management Tool With Kanban Board 700+ · 4.7★ (7) wp.org #20 ↑1 21 Feeds for Pinterest – Turn Your Boards into a Beautiful Gallery 200+ · 4.7★ (3) wp.org #19 2 too high 22 Nonprofit Board Management 100+ · 3.7★ (3) wp.org #13 ↑7 9 too high 23 BoardScribe – Accessible Board Meeting Agendas and Minutes 30+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #21 2 too high 24 Jobus – Job Board, Recruitment & Hiring Platform 100+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #23 1 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.