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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “cache manager”

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 “cache manager”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 7 of the top 20. 5 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

APCu Manager shows at wp.org #8 but places #19 on merit, a gap of 11 places. Its 10K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 4.6★ average from 20 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Folders – Unlimited Folders to Organize Media Library Folder, Pages, Posts, File Manager places #12 on merit, 5.0★ from 1525 reviews, but shows at wp.org #23. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Super Page Cache – Cloudflare Cache, Page Speed & Core Web Vitals 70K+ · 4.8★ (517) wp.org #1 2 GTM4WP – A Google Tag Manager (GTM) plugin for WordPress 700K+ · 4.5★ (155) wp.org #2 ↑1 3 Download Manager 100K+ · 4.1★ (1006) wp.org #4 1 too low 4 Events Manager – Calendar, Bookings, Tickets, Appointments and more! 60K+ · 4.2★ (551) wp.org #3 ↓1 1 too high 5 Advanced Ads – Ad Manager & AdSense 90K+ · 4.9★ (1463) wp.org #6 ↑2 1 too low 6 Checkout Field Manager (Checkout Manager) for WooCommerce 80K+ · 4.5★ (784) wp.org #7 ↓1 1 too low 7 Ad Inserter – Ad Manager & AdSense Ads 300K+ · 4.9★ (2433) wp.org #9 ↑6 2 too low 8 FAZ Cookie Manager 3K+ · 5.0★ (30) wp.org #5 3 too high 9 My Calendar – Accessible Event Manager 20K+ · 4.7★ (159) wp.org #10 ↓1 1 too low 10 Safe Redirect Manager 40K+ · 4.7★ (78) wp.org #11 ↓1 1 too low 11 Checkout Field Editor (Checkout Manager) for WooCommerce 400K+ · 4.9★ (1056) wp.org #19 ↓5 8 too low 12 Folders – Unlimited Folders to Organize Media Library Folder, Pages, Posts, File Manager 90K+ · 5.0★ (1525) wp.org #23 ↑1 11 too low 13 Complianz GDPR/CCPA Cookie Consent Banner 1M+ · 4.7★ (1668) wp.org #18 5 too low 14 WP User Manager – Registration Form, Login Form, User Profile Builder & Member Directory 10K+ · 4.7★ (350) wp.org #12 ↓1 2 too high 15 PixelYourSite – Your smart PIXEL (TAG) & API Manager 400K+ · 4.3★ (281) wp.org #16 ↑5 1 too low 16 User Access Manager 10K+ · 4.4★ (112) wp.org #15 ↑1 1 too high 17 WPCode – Insert Headers and Footers + Custom Code Snippets – WordPress Code Manager 3M+ · 4.9★ (1915) wp.org #24 ↓2 7 too low 18 Tracking Code Manager 90K+ · 4.1★ (58) wp.org #13 ↓1 5 too high 19 APCu Manager 10K+ · 4.6★ (20) wp.org #8 ↓1 11 too high 20 Premmerce Permalink Manager for WooCommerce 40K+ · 3.9★ (53) wp.org #14 ↓1 6 too high 21 Ads.txt Manager 100K+ · 4.7★ (15) wp.org #21 ↓2 22 OPcache Manager 2K+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #20 ↓2 2 too high 23 Security.txt Manager 700+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #22 ↓2 1 too high 24 Clear Cache Everywhere 1K+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #17 7 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.