Plugin Pulse Beta
← Rankings

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

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 “channels”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 8 of the top 20. 7 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

WP Discord Post Plus – Supports Unlimited Channels shows at wp.org #12 but places #21 on merit, a gap of 9 places. Its 600+ installs carry it up the search order; its 4.0★ average from 11 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

All-in-one Sticky Floating Contact Form, Call, Click to Chat, and 50+ Social Icon Tabs – My Sticky Elements places #10 on merit, 4.9★ from 542 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 Product Feed Manager for WooCommerce – CTX Feed – Support 220+ Shopping, AI & Social Channels 90K+ · 4.6★ (838) wp.org #1 2 Product Feed PRO for WooCommerce by AdTribes – Product Feeds for WooCommerce 80K+ · 4.7★ (1071) wp.org #4 ↓1 2 too low 3 WooCommerce 7M+ · 4.5★ (4833) wp.org #2 1 too high 4 Floating Chat Widget: Contact Chat Icons, Telegram Chat, Line Messenger, WeChat, Email, SMS, Call Button – Chaty 300K+ · 5.0★ (1244) wp.org #5 ↓1 1 too low 5 Product Feed Manager for WooCommerce – RexFeed – Sell on 200+ Shopping Channels 10K+ · 4.8★ (256) wp.org #3 ↓1 2 too high 6 The Events Calendar 600K+ · 4.2★ (2461) wp.org #7 ↓1 1 too low 7 Feeds for YouTube (YouTube video, channel, and gallery plugin) 100K+ · 4.8★ (205) wp.org #8 ↓2 1 too low 8 Automatic YouTube Gallery – Embed Auto-Updating YouTube Video Galleries, Feeds, Playlists & Channels 9K+ · 4.8★ (31) wp.org #6 ↓1 2 too high 9 Chat Widget: Floating Customer Support Button for 30+ Channels, Supporting SMS, Calls, and Chat – Bit Assist 9K+ · 4.9★ (111) wp.org #9 ↓2 10 All-in-one Sticky Floating Contact Form, Call, Click to Chat, and 50+ Social Icon Tabs – My Sticky Elements 40K+ · 4.9★ (542) wp.org #21 ↓3 11 too low 11 Ultra Addons for Contact Form 7 60K+ · 4.8★ (107) wp.org #15 ↓2 4 too low 12 Boei – AI Chatbot, Live Chat & 50+ Channels 900+ · 5.0★ (30) wp.org #10 2 too high 13 Embed Plus for YouTube Gallery, Livestream and Lazy Loading with Facades 100K+ · 4.6★ (572) wp.org #23 ↑1 10 too low 14 Product Feed for Google Shopping, Microsoft Advertising and 40+ Channels for WooCommerce Merchant 2K+ · 4.8★ (87) wp.org #11 ↓2 3 too high 15 Robo Gallery – Photo & Image Slider 40K+ · 4.3★ (406) wp.org #22 ↓2 7 too low 16 Metricool – Social media and site statistics 90K+ · 4.4★ (22) wp.org #14 2 too high 17 Sticky Chat Widget – Floating Chat Icons, Contact Form, Call, Click to Chat, Email & Message Buttons 10K+ · 5.0★ (39) wp.org #24 ↓1 7 too low 18 VikBooking Hotel Booking Engine & PMS 8K+ · 4.8★ (61) wp.org #18 ↑3 19 Telegram Bot & Channel 500+ · 4.8★ (22) wp.org #13 ↓1 6 too high 20 Playlist Player for YouTube – Fast, Privacy-Friendly Playlists & Channel Feed 1K+ · 4.8★ (13) wp.org #17 ↓2 3 too high 21 WP Discord Post Plus – Supports Unlimited Channels 600+ · 4.0★ (11) wp.org #12 ↓1 9 too high 22 GG Woo Feed for WooCommerce Shopping Feed on Google and Other Channels 1K+ · 4.5★ (12) wp.org #19 ↓2 3 too high 23 WooCommerce Analytics 20K+ · 4.5★ (4) wp.org #16 7 too high 24 SocialFeeds 40K+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #20 ↓1 4 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.