wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “comment vote”
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 vote”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 10 of the top 20.
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 the install base is organic or host-pushed, and its risk of being pulled.
Ranked above its merit
Crowdsignal Dashboard – Polls, Surveys & more shows at wp.org #10 but places #22 on merit, a gap of 12 places. Its 200K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 2.7★ average from 34 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
Buried gem
AI Engine – MCP Server & AI Chatbot for WordPress, with Claude, ChatGPT & Gemini places #9 on merit, 4.9★ from 874 reviews, but shows at wp.org #21. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.
Contest Gallery – Upload & Vote Photos, Media, Sell with PayPal & Stripe 1K+ · 4.4★ (89)
wp.org #1 2 
WP ULike – Like Buttons, Voting & Engagement Analytics 60K+ · 4.8★ (283)
wp.org #2 3 
Customer Reviews for WooCommerce 80K+ · 4.8★ (1539)
wp.org #3 4 
WP Recipe Maker 50K+ · 5.0★ (356)
wp.org #7 3 too low 5 
WP-Polls 40K+ · 4.2★ (136)
wp.org #5 6 
WP-PostRatings 20K+ · 4.4★ (178)
wp.org #6 7 
Comments Like Dislike 4K+ · 4.6★ (38)
wp.org #4 3 too high 8 
Like Button Rating ♥ LikeBtn 3K+ · 4.4★ (273)
wp.org #8 9 AI Engine – MCP Server & AI Chatbot for WordPress, with Claude, ChatGPT & Gemini 90K+ · 4.9★ (874)
wp.org #21 12 too low 10 
SportsPress – Sports Club & League Manager 10K+ · 4.7★ (369)
wp.org #20 ↓2 10 too low 11 
MainWP Child – Securely Connects to the MainWP Dashboard to Manage Multiple Sites 700K+ · 5.0★ (71)
wp.org #12 1 too low 12 
Democracy Poll 6K+ · 4.6★ (86)
wp.org #13 1 too low 13 
IdeaPush 700+ · 4.5★ (31)
wp.org #9 4 too high 14 
AJAX Login and Registration modal popup + inline form 3K+ · 4.7★ (120)
wp.org #19 5 too low 15 
GD Rating System 1K+ · 4.3★ (24) thin reviews
wp.org #11 4 too high 16 
Revopic – Photo Reviews for WooCommerce 10K+ · 4.7★ (77)
wp.org #22 ↓3 6 too low 17 
Happy FAQs – FAQ, Product FAQ & Help Center 1K+ · 4.8★ (23) thin reviews
wp.org #15 2 too high 18 
Knowledge Base documentation & wiki plugin – BasePress Docs 2K+ · 4.8★ (75)
wp.org #24 ↓2 6 too low 19 
Stars Rating 1K+ · 4.7★ (23) thin reviews
wp.org #18 ↓2 1 too high 20 
Hide Admin Bar Based on User Roles – Disable the WordPress Toolbar by Role or Capability 20K+ · 3.9★ (20) thin reviews
wp.org #14 6 too high 21 
ePoll – Contest Poll Survey & Voting 1K+ · 3.9★ (24) thin reviews
wp.org #17 4 too high 22 Crowdsignal Dashboard – Polls, Surveys & more 200K+ · 2.7★ (34)
wp.org #10 12 too high 23 
Post Engagement – Like Dislike, Share, Views, Star Rating, Favorites & Copy Posts 40+ · 5.0★ (3) thin reviews
wp.org #16 ↑4 7 too high 24 
Roadmap and Feedback Plugin for WordPress – SimpleBoards 40+ · 5.0★ (1) thin reviews
wp.org #23 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.