wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “category based posts”

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 “category based posts”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 8 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

Product Category Slider & Grid for WooCommerce – Reno Product Category shows at wp.org #8 but places #14 on merit, a gap of 6 places. Its 9K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 4.8★ average from 91 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Rank Math SEO – AI SEO Tools to Dominate SEO Rankings places #11 on merit, 4.8★ from 7519 reviews, but shows at wp.org #16. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin signals wp.org

Category Posts Block 40K+ · 4.5★ (79) wp.org #1 2

List category posts 80K+ · 4.7★ (254) wp.org #2 3

Folders – Unlimited Folders to Organize Media Library Folder, Pages, Posts, File Manager 90K+ · 5.0★ (1525) wp.org #5 2 too low 4

Category AJAX Filter – Posts, Custom Post Types & Product Filter 6K+ · 4.9★ (158) wp.org #3 1 too high 5

Recent Posts Widget With Thumbnails 100K+ · 4.8★ (215) wp.org #4 1 too high 6

Complianz GDPR/CCPA Cookie Consent Banner 1M+ · 4.7★ (1668) wp.org #9 ↑3 2 too low 8

Ultimate Category Excluder 50K+ · 4.3★ (78) wp.org #6 2 too high 9

Weight Based Shipping Table Rate for WooCommerce – Flexible Shipping 100K+ · 4.9★ (706) wp.org #13 4 too low 10

Simple Custom Post Order 300K+ · 4.8★ (587) wp.org #12 ↓1 2 too low 11

Rank Math SEO – AI SEO Tools to Dominate SEO Rankings 4M+ · 4.8★ (7519) wp.org #16 5 too low 12

Schedule Post Changes With PublishPress Future: Unpublish, Delete, Change Status, Trash, Change Categories 100K+ · 4.5★ (172) wp.org #11 ↓1 1 too high 13

Translate WordPress with GTranslate 900K+ · 4.9★ (4962) wp.org #17 4 too low 14

Product Category Slider & Grid for WooCommerce – Reno Product Category 9K+ · 4.8★ (91) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #8 6 too high 15

Category Posts in Custom Menu 2K+ · 4.8★ (43) wp.org #10 ↓1 5 too high 16

ElementsKit Elementor Addons – Advanced Widgets & Templates Addons for Elementor 1M+ · 4.9★ (2051) wp.org #21 5 too low 17

Ultimate Post Kit – Elementor Post Grid, Post Carousel, Post Slider & Blog Layout Widgets 30K+ · 4.8★ (58) wp.org #19 1 too low 19

Hide Posts 20K+ · 4.7★ (22) thin reviews wp.org #15 ↓1 4 too high 20

Flex Posts – Responsive Posts Block 2K+ · 5.0★ (24) thin reviews wp.org #20 21

Reorder Posts – Quick Post Type and Page Ordering 10K+ · 3.9★ (28) wp.org #24 3 too low 22

Magical Posts Display – Elementor Advanced Posts widgets 3K+ · 4.4★ (10) thin reviews wp.org #23 1 too low 23

Latest Posts 4K+ · 4.6★ (7) thin reviews wp.org #22 1 too high 24

Role Based Pricing for Woo by Meow Crew 2K+ · 4.2★ (5) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews wp.org #18 6 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.