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

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 “cafe”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 11 of the top 20. 2 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

FoodBook Lite – Online Food Ordering System shows at wp.org #8 but places #21 on merit, a gap of 13 places. Its 300+ 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.

Buried gem

WP EasyCart: Shopping Cart and eCommerce Store places #8 on merit, 4.5★ from 206 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 Widgets for Google Reviews 1M+ · 4.9★ (2667) wp.org #1 2 WPCafe – Restaurant Menu, Online Food Ordering & Table Booking System 5K+ · 4.6★ (113) wp.org #2 ↓1 3 Spotlight Social Photo Feed 50K+ · 4.7★ (171) wp.org #6 3 too low 4 RestroPress – Online Food Ordering System 1K+ · 4.4★ (102) wp.org #5 ↓1 1 too low 5 Restaurant Menu and Food Ordering 2K+ · 4.5★ (15) wp.org #4 ↓1 1 too high 6 Restaurant & Cafe Addon for Elementor 1K+ · 4.8★ (6) wp.org #3 ↓1 3 too high 7 Layouts for Elementor 1K+ · 4.7★ (14) wp.org #7 ↓2 8 WP EasyCart: Shopping Cart and eCommerce Store 3K+ · 4.5★ (206) wp.org #17 ↓9 9 too low 9 Smart Online Order for Clover 1K+ · 4.9★ (34) wp.org #9 ↑1 10 Five Star Restaurant Menu and Food Ordering 5K+ · 4.6★ (107) wp.org #18 ↓1 8 too low 11 WP Maps – Google Maps, OpenStreetMap, Mapbox, Store Locator with Search, Filters & Listings 60K+ · 4.3★ (122) wp.org #15 ↓1 4 too low 12 Food Menu – Restaurant Menu & Online Ordering for WooCommerce 2K+ · 5.0★ (24) wp.org #20 ↓7 8 too low 13 Layouts for WPBakery 3K+ · 4.4★ (9) wp.org #12 1 too high 14 Shared Albums for Google Photos 500+ · 4.9★ (10) wp.org #16 ↑2 2 too low 15 Layouts for Divi 1K+ · 5.0★ (5) wp.org #11 4 too high 16 PrinterCo Automatic Order Printing for WooCommerce 300+ · 5.0★ (6) wp.org #21 ↓6 5 too low 17 MyD Delivery 100+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #13 ↓4 4 too high 18 LovedByAI – GEO (Generative Engine Optimization) & AI SEO Plugin: AEO, llms.txt 1K+ · 4.4★ (5) wp.org #24 6 too low 19 Business Card Block – present your team and contact info in style 1K+ · 4.3★ (4) wp.org #19 ↓3 20 Brainstorm Cafe Podcast Player 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #10 10 too high 21 FoodBook Lite – Online Food Ordering System 300+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #8 ↓2 13 too high 22 MyD Delivery Widgets 500+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #14 ↓7 8 too high 23 LimaBook Restaurant & Cafe Reservations — WordPress Booking Plugin 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #23 24 Local Business Schema Generator 100+ · 4.0★ (1) wp.org #22 2 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.