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

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 “cms”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 13 of the top 20. 5 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

G-Live CMS shows at wp.org #4 but places #21 on merit, a gap of 17 places. Its 100+ 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

WP All Import – Drag & Drop Import for CSV, XML, Excel & Google Sheets places #6 on merit, 4.7★ from 1966 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.

merit plugin wp.org
1 White Label CMS 200K+ · 4.7★ (114) wp.org #1 2 CMS Tree Page View – Reorder Pages with a Drag-and-Drop Tree 50K+ · 4.9★ (365) wp.org #2 3 CM Tooltip Glossary 7K+ · 4.3★ (157) wp.org #3 4 W WP Photo Album Plus 10K+ · 4.7★ (199) wp.org #5 1 too low 5 List category posts 80K+ · 4.7★ (254) wp.org #11 ↓3 6 too low 6 WP All Import – Drag & Drop Import for CSV, XML, Excel & Google Sheets 100K+ · 4.7★ (1966) wp.org #19 ↓1 13 too low 7 reSmush.it : The original free image compressor and optimizer plugin 100K+ · 4.3★ (166) wp.org #17 ↓2 10 too low 8 Frontend View For Headless CMS 100+ · 5.0★ (5) wp.org #6 ↓2 2 too high 9 Widget Context 30K+ · 4.5★ (98) wp.org #15 6 too low 10 CM Answers – Discussion Forum Plugin for WordPress Q&A 300+ · 3.8★ (86) wp.org #12 ↓2 2 too low 11 CM Search And Replace – Optimize content edits with a powerful search and replace tool 2K+ · 4.2★ (15) wp.org #7 ↓1 4 too high 12 List categories 5K+ · 4.5★ (15) wp.org #14 ↓2 2 too low 13 WP Hide & Security Enhancer 50K+ · 4.3★ (275) wp.org #23 10 too low 14 MB Custom Post Types & Custom Taxonomies 10K+ · 4.7★ (13) wp.org #21 ↓2 7 too low 15 Staatic – Static Site Generator for WordPress 3K+ · 4.4★ (21) wp.org #22 7 too low 16 CM Pop-Up – Create engaging popups to capture attention and boost interaction 8K+ · 3.4★ (13) wp.org #9 ↓2 7 too high 17 RSS Includes Pages 10K+ · 3.9★ (17) wp.org #24 ↓4 7 too low 18 CM E-Mail Blacklist – Simple email filtering for safer registration 800+ · 4.5★ (8) wp.org #13 ↓2 5 too high 19 MediaBlaster – Video CMS, Vimeo Import, Live TV & Podcasts 200+ · 3.9★ (14) wp.org #16 ↓2 3 too high 20 CMS ADMINS Security Check Report 400+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #8 ↑5 12 too high 21 G-Live CMS 100+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #4 17 too high 22 Two Factor (2FA) Authentication via Email 9K+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #18 ↓2 4 too high 23 C Cornerstone 20K+ · 4.0★ (6) wp.org #20 ↓3 3 too high 24 CM Header and Footer – Add custom scripts and styles to your header and footer with ease 1K+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #10 ↓1 14 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.