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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “comment limiter”

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 “comment limiter”, we and wp.org disagree on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 12 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

SolverGuard Spam Shield — Anti-Spam, Bot & Login Protection shows at wp.org #12 but places #20 on merit, a gap of 8 places. Its 20+ 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

Security Plugin, Firewall & Malware Scanner with Auto Removal places #4 on merit, 4.8★ from 397 reviews, but shows at wp.org #20. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Login With Ajax – Fast Logins, 2FA, Redirects 10K+ · 4.6★ (167) wp.org #3 2 too low 2 WPEPP – Essential Security, Password Protect & Login Page Customizer 3K+ · 4.1★ (19) wp.org #2 3 Adminify – White Label, Admin Menu Editor, Login Customizer 6K+ · 4.3★ (109) wp.org #5 2 too low 4 Security Plugin, Firewall & Malware Scanner with Auto Removal 40K+ · 4.8★ (397) wp.org #20 16 too low 5 Atlant Security 700+ · 5.0★ (8) wp.org #6 1 too low 6 Comment Limiter 30+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #1 5 too high 7 Nexter Extension – Security, Performance, Code Snippets & Site Toolkit 10K+ · 4.7★ (13) wp.org #8 1 too low 8 PDF Password Protect 200+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #4 4 too high 9 Admin Safety Guard — Login Security, Limit Logins, 2FA & Brute Force Protection 20+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #19 10 too low 10 CAPI Suite: Meta Pixel, Pinterest & TikTok for WooCommerce 100+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #10 11 Odyssey LLMS 300+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #14 3 too low 12 Ultra Web Hosting Performance Toolkit 300+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #9 3 too high 13 AMSites Login Customizer 30+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #7 6 too high 14 Webtaru Site Options and Login Security — · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #23 9 too low 15 Comments Limiter — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #11 4 too high 16 Sitevorx — · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #22 6 too low 17 Scheduled Comments Closer — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #15 2 too high 18 Umay AI Markdown 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #16 2 too high 19 SecureLite Security – Firewall, Malware Scanner & Attack Simulation 10+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #13 6 too high 20 SolverGuard Spam Shield — Anti-Spam, Bot & Login Protection 20+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #12 8 too high 21 M Magic Emails & Autologin URLs 100+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #18 3 too high 22 Forge12 Security – Firewall, Malware Scanner, 2FA & Login Security 50+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #21 1 too high 23 EmiCache – Faster Elementor, Better PageSpeed 40+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #24 1 too low 24 APG Withdrawal for WooCommerce 60+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #17 7 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.