Plugin Pulse Beta
← Rankings

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

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 “calculate”, we and wp.org disagree on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 10 of the top 20. 3 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

Calculate BMR and BMI shows at wp.org #3 but places #21 on merit, a gap of 18 places. Its 200+ installs carry it up the search order; its 3.5★ average from 2 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Weight Based Shipping for WooCommerce places #11 on merit, 4.6★ from 83 reviews, but shows at wp.org #21. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Calculated Fields Form – AI Form Builder for WordPress – Contact, Payment, Quote, Quiz & More 40K+ · 4.9★ (973) wp.org #2 ↓1 1 too low 2 Calculate Prices based on Distance For WooCommerce 300+ · 4.8★ (20) wp.org #1 ↑1 1 too high 3 Photo Gallery, Sliders, Proofing and Themes – NextGEN Gallery 300K+ · 4.3★ (4342) wp.org #4 1 too low 4 WP Armour – Honeypot Anti Spam 400K+ · 5.0★ (1471) wp.org #10 ↓1 6 too low 5 Side Cart Woocommerce | Woocommerce Cart 70K+ · 4.9★ (453) wp.org #11 ↓4 6 too low 6 Really Simple CAPTCHA 300K+ · 4.2★ (131) wp.org #7 ↓2 1 too low 7 Table Rate Shipping for WooCommerce 10K+ · 4.5★ (74) wp.org #8 ↓2 1 too low 8 Cost Calculator Builder 20K+ · 4.5★ (393) wp.org #13 ↑6 5 too low 9 Shipping Simulator for WooCommerce 6K+ · 5.0★ (40) wp.org #6 ↑6 3 too high 10 FileOrganizer – WordPress File Manager 200K+ · 4.8★ (49) wp.org #9 ↓1 1 too high 11 Weight Based Shipping for WooCommerce 50K+ · 4.6★ (83) wp.org #21 ↓5 10 too low 12 Product Bundle Builder for WooCommerce 6K+ · 4.8★ (61) wp.org #17 ↑3 5 too low 13 Cost of Goods: Product Cost & Profit Calculator for WooCommerce 9K+ · 4.7★ (41) wp.org #14 ↓3 1 too low 14 Read Meter – Reading Time & Progress Bar 10K+ · 4.5★ (19) wp.org #16 ↓2 2 too low 15 Calculator Builder – Create an Online Calculator 1K+ · 4.7★ (18) wp.org #19 ↓1 4 too low 16 WooCommerce Tax (formerly WooCommerce Shipping & Tax) 500K+ · 2.0★ (105) wp.org #5 ↑10 11 too high 17 USPS Simple Shipping for Woocommerce 8K+ · 4.4★ (28) wp.org #23 ↓1 6 too low 18 Flexible Quantity & Price Calculator for WooCommerce 2K+ · 4.3★ (9) wp.org #18 ↓1 19 Tiny Yardage Calculator 300+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #15 ↓2 4 too high 20 Absolute Reviews 6K+ · 4.0★ (8) wp.org #20 ↑1 21 Calculate BMR and BMI 200+ · 3.5★ (2) wp.org #3 18 too high 22 Interlinks Manager – Internal Links Optimizer 7K+ · 4.6★ (5) wp.org #22 ↑1 23 Calculate Page Execution Time 10+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #12 ↓2 11 too high 24 E ESTO payment methods 600+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #24

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.