wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “charges”
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 “charges”, we and wp.org disagree on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 9 of the top 20.
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 the install base is organic or host-pushed, and its risk of being pulled.
Ranked above its merit
HivePress Claim Listings shows at wp.org #6 but places #24 on merit, a gap of 18 places. Its 3K+ 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
UPI QR Code Payment Gateway for WooCommerce places #12 on merit, 4.8★ from 256 reviews, but shows at wp.org #19. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.
Members – Membership & User Role Editor Plugin 300K+ · 4.9★ (1281)
wp.org #2 ↓1 1 too low 2 
PDF Invoices & Packing Slips for WooCommerce 300K+ · 5.0★ (1865)
wp.org #4 2 too low 3 
XML Sitemap Generator for Google 1M+ · 4.8★ (2233)
wp.org #5 2 too low 4 
PI Conditional cart fee / Extra charge rule for WooCommerce 2K+ · 4.9★ (38)
wp.org #3 1 too high 5 N Ni WooCommerce Payment Gateway Charges 100+ · 5.0★ (4) thin reviews
wp.org #1 ↑1 4 too high 6 
Pods – Custom Content Types and Fields 100K+ · 4.8★ (418)
wp.org #8 ↑1 2 too low 7 
Antispam Bee 700K+ · 4.8★ (226)
wp.org #7 8 
Easy Digital Downloads – eCommerce Payments and Subscriptions made easy 40K+ · 4.7★ (592)
wp.org #13 ↑5 5 too low 9 
Payment Gateway Based Fees and Discounts for WooCommerce 30K+ · 4.7★ (58)
wp.org #10 1 too low 10 
Classified Listing – AI-Powered Classified ads & Business Directory 9K+ · 4.8★ (138)
wp.org #14 ↑2 4 too low 11 
Pay for Payment for WooCommerce – Payment Gateway Fees & Discounts 10K+ · 4.7★ (71)
wp.org #12 1 too low 12 UPI QR Code Payment Gateway for WooCommerce 10K+ · 4.8★ (256)
wp.org #19 ↓6 7 too low 13 
HivePress – Business Directory, Listings & Classified Ads Plugin 10K+ · 4.9★ (222)
wp.org #20 ↑4 7 too low 14 
Enable Media Replace 600K+ · 4.4★ (302)
wp.org #16 ↑1 2 too low 15 
Extra Fees for WooCommerce 7K+ · 4.3★ (42)
wp.org #11 4 too high 16 
Fluent Forms – Customizable Contact Forms, Survey, Quiz, & Conversational Form Builder 800K+ · 4.8★ (808)
wp.org #24 8 too low 17 
PiWeb Disable payment method / Partial payment for WooCommerce 4K+ · 5.0★ (38)
wp.org #17 ↓3 18 
FluentCart A New Era of eCommerce – Faster, Lighter, and Simpler 9K+ · 4.5★ (46)
wp.org #15 ↑4 3 too high 19 
Say What? 40K+ · 4.3★ (92)
wp.org #21 ↑1 2 too low 20 
Flexible PDF Invoices for WooCommerce & WordPress 6K+ · 4.4★ (37)
wp.org #18 ↓3 2 too high 21 
Easy PayPal & Stripe Buy Now Button 10K+ · 4.5★ (24) thin reviews
wp.org #23 2 too low 22 
Backend Payments for WooCommerce 800+ · 4.7★ (12) thin reviews
wp.org #22 ↓2 23 
HivePress Paid Listings 4K+ · 3.3★ (3) thin reviews
wp.org #9 ↓1 14 too high 24 HivePress Claim Listings 3K+ · 5.0★ (1) thin reviews
wp.org #6 18 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.