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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “contacts capturing”

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 “contacts capturing”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 15 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

Mailercloud – Integrate webforms and synchronize website contacts shows at wp.org #2 but places #17 on merit, a gap of 15 places. Its 100+ installs carry it up the search order; its 4.0★ average from 1 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Landing Page Builder – Coming Soon page, Maintenance Mode, Lead Page, WordPress Landing Pages places #12 on merit, 4.6★ from 202 reviews, but shows at wp.org #24. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Controls for Contact Form 7 (Redirects, Analytics & Tracking) 10K+ · 5.0★ (13) wp.org #1 ↑22 2 Generate PDF using Contact Form 7 4K+ · 4.7★ (40) wp.org #3 ↓1 1 too low 3 Form Vibes – Save Contact Form 7 & Elementor Form Entries to Database 10K+ · 4.9★ (132) wp.org #6 ↓1 3 too low 4 Otter Blocks – Gutenberg Blocks, Page Builder for Gutenberg Editor & FSE 300K+ · 4.7★ (251) wp.org #9 ↓1 5 too low 5 FunnelKit – Funnel Builder Plugin for WooCommerce Checkout 30K+ · 5.0★ (1028) wp.org #15 10 too low 6 FunnelKit Automations – Email Marketing Automation and CRM for WordPress & WooCommerce 20K+ · 5.0★ (346) wp.org #17 ↓1 11 too low 7 Popup Builder & Popup Maker for WordPress – OptinMonster Email Marketing and Lead Generation 1M+ · 4.3★ (821) wp.org #12 ↓1 5 too low 8 FuseWP – WordPress User Sync to Email List & Marketing Automation (Mailchimp, Constant Contact, ActiveCampaign etc.) 2K+ · 4.9★ (25) wp.org #8 ↓1 9 Landingi Landing Pages 2K+ · 5.0★ (20) wp.org #10 1 too low 10 Backend Payments for WooCommerce 800+ · 4.7★ (12) wp.org #7 ↓1 3 too high 11 Contact Form DB Divi 3K+ · 3.9★ (9) wp.org #4 ↓1 7 too high 12 Landing Page Builder – Coming Soon page, Maintenance Mode, Lead Page, WordPress Landing Pages 8K+ · 4.6★ (202) wp.org #24 12 too low 13 Email Marketing Plugin – WP Email Capture 1K+ · 4.3★ (19) wp.org #11 ↓2 2 too high 14 Online Booking & Scheduling Calendar by vcita 1K+ · 3.9★ (117) wp.org #19 ↓1 5 too low 15 HT Contact Form – Drag & Drop Form Builder for WordPress 10K+ · 4.2★ (5) wp.org #5 ↓1 10 too high 16 Lead Form Data Collection to CRM 400+ · 4.0★ (46) wp.org #20 ↓1 4 too low 17 Mailercloud – Integrate webforms and synchronize website contacts 100+ · 4.0★ (1) wp.org #2 ↓1 15 too high 18 Q Quickpay for WooCommerce 3K+ · 4.8★ (12) wp.org #14 4 too high 19 Contact Form Builder by vcita 600+ · 3.3★ (42) wp.org #16 ↓3 3 too high 20 GoDaddy Payments for WooCommerce 2K+ · 4.3★ (6) wp.org #22 ↓1 2 too low 21 Zoho Integration for WordPress 200+ · 2.9★ (9) wp.org #23 ↓1 2 too low 22 Cliengo – Chatbot 1K+ · 4.0★ (3) wp.org #21 ↓1 1 too high 23 pensopay Payments 1K+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #18 ↓1 5 too high 24 SiteGround Email Marketing 2K+ · 2.0★ (4) wp.org #13 ↓1 11 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.