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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “campaign tracker”

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 “campaign tracker”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 12 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

WhatsLink Click Tracker shows at wp.org #4 but places #14 on merit, a gap of 10 places. Its 400+ 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

Cookiebot – Cookie Banner & Cookie Consent for GDPR, CCPA & Google Consent Mode places #6 on merit, 4.4★ from 440 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 WP Statistics – Simple, privacy-friendly Google Analytics alternative 500K+ · 4.1★ (758) wp.org #1 2 Email Tracker 800+ · 4.4★ (21) wp.org #2 3 HandL UTM Grabber / Tracker 10K+ · 4.8★ (146) wp.org #5 2 too low 4 SlimStat Analytics – Real-Time Stats, Heatmaps & Ecommerce 70K+ · 4.8★ (816) wp.org #12 8 too low 5 UTM Event Tracker and Analytics, UTM Grabber 800+ · 5.0★ (6) wp.org #3 2 too high 6 Cookiebot – Cookie Banner & Cookie Consent for GDPR, CCPA & Google Consent Mode 100K+ · 4.4★ (440) wp.org #21 15 too low 7 AdRotate Banner Manager 20K+ · 4.3★ (655) wp.org #15 8 too low 8 Superb Addons: Blocks, Patterns, Pre-built Pages, Sliders, Popups, Free Forms, Animations & More 80K+ · 4.9★ (23) wp.org #22 14 too low 9 Google for WooCommerce 800K+ · 2.7★ (268) wp.org #9 10 Affiliate Coupons – Coupon Display Manager – Excellent Tool for Affiliate Marketers 1K+ · 4.5★ (36) wp.org #24 14 too low 11 Trace My IP – Visitor IP Tracker, Stats Analytics & Page Views Counter with Email Alerts 1K+ · 4.5★ (21) wp.org #14 3 too low 12 Brevo for WooCommerce 30K+ · 3.4★ (55) wp.org #16 4 too low 13 BaseCloud UTM Tracker 90+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #8 5 too high 14 WhatsLink Click Tracker 400+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #4 10 too high 15 UTM Tracker for Contact Form 7 400+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #6 9 too high 16 Source Medium Tracker for Contact Form 7 200+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #10 6 too high 17 Webwall QR Campaign Tracker 10+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #7 10 too high 18 Livebeep – Chatbot, Live Chat, CRM & Digital Marketing 400+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #17 1 too high 19 UTM Tracker for Gravity Forms 100+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #11 8 too high 20 Codersly Visitor Tracker 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #18 2 too high 21 Snitcher Tracker 70+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #20 1 too high 22 Benchmark Email Lite 1K+ · 4.0★ (3) wp.org #19 3 too high 23 Cross Domain Tracker for AffiliateWP 200+ · 3.0★ (2) wp.org #13 10 too high 24 Meta Pixel Event Tracker for WooCommerce 50+ · 0.0★ (0) 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.