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

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 “clamp”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 2 of the top 20. 1 plugin is 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

Fluid Font Forge shows at wp.org #3 but places #8 on merit, a gap of 5 places. Its 10+ 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

Kirki – Freeform Page Builder, Website Builder & Customizer places #2 on merit, 4.5★ from 81 reviews, but shows at wp.org #24. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Category Posts Block 40K+ · 4.5★ (79) wp.org #1 2 Kirki – Freeform Page Builder, Website Builder & Customizer 400K+ · 4.5★ (81) wp.org #24 ↓3 22 too low 3 PixeBuilder – Drag & Drop Page Builder & Website Builder 100+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #5 ↑1 2 too low 4 Auto podcast import 100+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #4 5 Neurogenesis Styler – Block Editor Typography, Spacing & Design Controls 20+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #6 ↓1 1 too low 6 Fluid Design System for Elementor 300+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #2 4 too high 7 FrontBlocks Site Tools 500+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #7 8 Fluid Font Forge 10+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #3 5 too high 9 W WPSecureOps Connector 80+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #8 1 too high 10 Utility for GeneratePress 30+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #9 1 too high 11 Uplink CSS Columns 20+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #10 1 too high 12 Fluid Space Forge — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #11 1 too high 13 YAOTW Stylo – Design System Importer 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #12 1 too high 14 Kraan Consistent Product Grid Height for WooCommerce — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #13 1 too high 15 Kazzylen Title Optimizer for WooCommerce — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #14 1 too high 16 Dzine Digital Made-to-Measure Pricing for WooCommerce — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #15 1 too high 17 R Recommendations Widget for LinkedIn — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #16 ↓1 1 too high 18 M MM Post Grid — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #17 ↓1 1 too high 19 T Theme Image Block — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #18 ↓1 1 too high 20 D Design Tokens Manager for Elementor — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #19 1 too high 21 Theme.json Design Manager — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #20 1 too high 22 Yangra Calculator — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #21 1 too high 23 Typography Stylist 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #22 ↓4 1 too high 24 Zealblocks (Beta) — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #23 ↓1 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.