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

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 “cloak”, we and wp.org disagree on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 6 of the top 20. 2 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

Version Cloak shows at wp.org #5 but places #13 on merit, a gap of 8 places. Its 10+ installs carry it up the search order; its 0.0★ average from 0 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

WP All Import – Drag & Drop Import for CSV, XML, Excel & Google Sheets places #4 on merit, 4.7★ from 1966 reviews, but shows at wp.org #9. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 BetterLinks – Link Shortener, Link Cloaking, Redirects, Affiliate Link Manager & MCP 20K+ · 4.8★ (85) wp.org #2 1 too low 2 PrettyLinks – Affiliate Link Management, URL Shortener, Link Cloaking, Tracking & Branded Short Links 200K+ · 4.8★ (1322) wp.org #4 ↓1 2 too low 3 C Cloak Affiliate Links for WooCommerce 1K+ · 4.3★ (12) wp.org #1 2 too high 4 WP All Import – Drag & Drop Import for CSV, XML, Excel & Google Sheets 100K+ · 4.7★ (1966) wp.org #9 5 too low 5 URL Shortify – Simple and Easy URL Shortener 10K+ · 4.7★ (169) wp.org #7 2 too low 6 Affiliate Links – Link Cloaking and Management 3K+ · 5.0★ (10) wp.org #3 ↑1 3 too high 7 ThirstyAffiliates – Affiliate Links, Link Branding, Link Tracking & Marketing Plugin 30K+ · 4.6★ (251) wp.org #12 5 too low 8 Easy Affiliate Links 6K+ · 4.2★ (34) wp.org #6 2 too high 9 Auto Affiliate Links 2K+ · 4.1★ (39) wp.org #8 1 too high 10 LinkCentral – URL shortener, Affiliate Links & Custom Link Shortener with Link Tracking 400+ · 5.0★ (19) wp.org #11 1 too low 11 Datafeedr WooCommerce Importer 4K+ · 4.8★ (38) wp.org #15 4 too low 12 Lasso Lite – Affiliate Link Manager, URL Shortener & Link Tracking 4K+ · 3.1★ (47) wp.org #10 2 too high 13 Version Cloak 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #5 8 too high 14 PublishPress Shortlinks – The Link Manager for WordPress 200+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #16 2 too low 15 Royal Links – Affiliate Link Cloaking, Shortener & Tracker 50+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #13 2 too high 16 Mail Cloak 80+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #14 2 too high 17 zenVPN — Invisibility cloak for your wp-admin — · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #23 ↓1 6 too low 18 RB Cloak Media Files — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #17 1 too high 19 ClearComet Cloak for MCP — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #18 1 too high 20 Cute Links – Free Link Branding and Link Cloaker Plugin with Click Tracking 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #20 ↓1 21 URL Short tool by Shorterm – Simple, Fast & Private 30+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #22 ↓1 1 too low 22 Custom Link Shortener 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #24 ↓1 2 too low 23 LinkGenius – Affiliate Link Manager and Link Shortener 10+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #19 ↓1 4 too high 24 LazyLink — · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #21 ↓1 3 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.