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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “code postal”

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 “code postal”, we and wp.org disagree on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 14 of the top 20. 8 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

Oderland SMTP & Postal Mailer shows at wp.org #2 but places #13 on merit, a gap of 11 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

Smart COD for WooCommerce places #10 on merit, 4.6★ from 52 reviews, but shows at wp.org #22. 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 PRO for WooCommerce by AdTribes – Product Feeds for WooCommerce 80K+ · 4.7★ (1071) wp.org #5 4 too low 2 WooCommerce Stripe Payment Gateway 700K+ · 3.1★ (237) wp.org #1 1 too high 3 Table Rate Shipping for WooCommerce 10K+ · 4.5★ (74) wp.org #6 3 too low 4 Business Directory Plugin – Easy Listing & Member Directories for WordPress 10K+ · 4.6★ (504) wp.org #10 ↑1 6 too low 5 Z zipaddr-jp 50K+ · 5.0★ (6) wp.org #3 2 too high 6 MultiParcels Shipping For WooCommerce 4K+ · 4.6★ (62) wp.org #8 ↑1 2 too low 7 Express, Certified Post, Bike Delivery and Iranian Postal Companies for WooCommerce 1K+ · 4.1★ (16) wp.org #4 3 too high 8 SureForms – Contact Form Builder, AI Forms, Payment Form, Survey & Quiz 500K+ · 4.8★ (102) wp.org #14 ↓4 6 too low 9 Portugal States (Distritos) for WooCommerce 5K+ · 5.0★ (9) wp.org #7 2 too high 10 Smart COD for WooCommerce 30K+ · 4.6★ (52) wp.org #22 ↓1 12 too low 11 Zero Spam for WordPress 20K+ · 4.1★ (143) wp.org #16 ↓2 5 too low 12 Noptin – Newsletter, New Post Notifications & Email Automation 10K+ · 4.5★ (120) wp.org #18 ↓1 6 too low 13 Oderland SMTP & Postal Mailer 100+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #2 11 too high 14 Address Autocomplete Anything – Google Address Autocomplete for Any Form 900+ · 5.0★ (16) wp.org #23 9 too low 15 Form Input Masks For Elementor Forms 10K+ · 4.1★ (18) wp.org #12 ↑1 3 too high 16 Japanized for WooCommerce 10K+ · 3.3★ (21) wp.org #9 ↓1 7 too high 17 iNext Woo Pincode Checker 600+ · 4.2★ (13) wp.org #13 ↑3 4 too high 18 ELEX WooCommerce USPS Shipping Method 800+ · 4.4★ (7) wp.org #17 ↑1 1 too high 19 Check Pincode For WooCommerce 300+ · 4.4★ (5) wp.org #15 4 too high 20 Portugal CTT Tracking for WooCommerce 500+ · 5.0★ (5) wp.org #20 21 ووسلام – همگام سازی ووکامرس و باسلام 6K+ · 4.3★ (4) wp.org #11 ↑1 10 too high 22 Colete-Online 600+ · 3.8★ (5) wp.org #21 ↑1 1 too high 23 OPSI Israel Domestic Shipments 300+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #19 4 too high 24 WPSSO Schema Organization and Place Manager 300+ · 4.3★ (3) wp.org #24

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.