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

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 “calling”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 14 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

AI Provider For DeepSeek shows at wp.org #5 but places #16 on merit, a gap of 11 places. Its 400+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 2 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

WP TripAdvisor Review Slider places #10 on merit, 4.8★ from 135 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 AI Engine – MCP Server & AI Chatbot for WordPress, with Claude, ChatGPT & Gemini 90K+ · 4.9★ (874) wp.org #1 2 Category Order and Taxonomy Terms Order 500K+ · 4.5★ (162) wp.org #2 3 Strong Testimonials 80K+ · 4.8★ (614) wp.org #6 ↓1 3 too low 4 Query Monitor 200K+ · 4.9★ (470) wp.org #9 ↓1 5 too low 5 Call Now Button – The Free Click to Call Button for WordPress 200K+ · 4.8★ (102) wp.org #7 ↓1 2 too low 6 WP Super Cache 1M+ · 4.3★ (1346) wp.org #8 ↑1 2 too low 7 MxChat – AI Chatbot & Content Generation for WordPress 2K+ · 5.0★ (31) wp.org #4 3 too high 8 M Mammoth .docx converter 20K+ · 4.8★ (62) wp.org #11 3 too low 9 Notification for Telegram 4K+ · 4.9★ (71) wp.org #14 ↑1 5 too low 10 WP TripAdvisor Review Slider 8K+ · 4.8★ (135) wp.org #22 12 too low 11 WP Offload SES Lite 10K+ · 4.3★ (36) wp.org #16 5 too low 12 RPS Include Content 700+ · 4.9★ (18) wp.org #23 ↑1 11 too low 13 AI Provider for Anthropic 70K+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #3 10 too high 14 Code Engine – PHP Snippets, AI Functions & Automation for WordPress 800+ · 5.0★ (9) wp.org #17 3 too low 15 ResponsiveVoice Text To Speech 7K+ · 3.9★ (34) wp.org #21 6 too low 16 AI Provider For DeepSeek 400+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #5 ↑2 11 too high 17 Group Chat & Video Chat by AtomChat 200+ · 4.6★ (8) wp.org #19 2 too low 18 Pixeline’s Email Protector 900+ · 4.3★ (8) wp.org #20 2 too low 19 AI Provider for Google 50K+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #10 9 too high 20 AI Provider for Ollama 300+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #15 ↓1 5 too high 21 Trusted Shops Easy Integration for WooCommerce 6K+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #12 9 too high 22 AI Services 100+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #18 4 too high 23 AI Provider for OpenAI 60K+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #13 10 too high 24 JSM Adobe XMP / IPTC for WordPress 70+ · 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.