wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “content reminder”
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 “content reminder”, we and wp.org disagree on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 12 of the top 20. 4 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
Content Reminder shows at wp.org #3 but places #20 on merit, a gap of 17 places. Its 10+ 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
Online Scheduling and Appointment Booking System – Bookly places #10 on merit, 4.4★ from 586 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.
Paid Membership Subscriptions – Effortless Memberships, Recurring Payments & Content Restriction 10K+ · 4.7★ (270)
wp.org #2 1 too low 2 
Customer Reviews for WooCommerce 80K+ · 4.8★ (1539)
wp.org #4 ↓1 2 too low 3 
Passster – Password Protect Pages and Content 10K+ · 4.2★ (60) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #1 2 too high 4 
PublishPress Planner – Editorial Calendar, Marketing Content, Kanban Board 6K+ · 4.9★ (178)
wp.org #5 ↑1 1 too low 5 
Events Manager – Calendar, Bookings, Tickets, Appointments and more! 60K+ · 4.2★ (551) not PHP-current
wp.org #6 ↓1 1 too low 6 
User Registration & Membership – Free & Paid Memberships, Subscriptions, Content Restriction, User Profile, Custom User Registration & Login Builder 50K+ · 4.8★ (832)
wp.org #11 ↑1 5 too low 7 
Booking for Appointments and Events Calendar – Amelia 90K+ · 4.6★ (793)
wp.org #13 ↑1 6 too low 8 
Cart Abandonment Recovery for WooCommerce – Recover Lost Sales with Automated Emails 300K+ · 4.8★ (626) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #8 ↑1 9 
Customize WordPress Emails and Alerts – Better Notifications for WP 30K+ · 4.8★ (184)
wp.org #14 ↓1 5 too low 10 Online Scheduling and Appointment Booking System – Bookly 60K+ · 4.4★ (586)
wp.org #21 ↓1 11 too low 11 
Appointment Booking Plugin – LatePoint | Calendar & Scheduling for WordPress 100K+ · 4.9★ (106)
wp.org #20 ↓2 9 too low 12 
Events Made Easy 1K+ · 4.6★ (111)
wp.org #22 ↓1 10 too low 13 
s2Member – Excellent for All Kinds of Memberships, Content Restriction Paywalls & Member Access Subscriptions 8K+ · 4.1★ (234) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #15 2 too low 14 
Easy Appointments 10K+ · 4.3★ (131) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #16 ↑3 2 too low 15 
CartBounty – Save and recover abandoned carts for WooCommerce 10K+ · 4.8★ (84) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #18 ↓1 3 too low 16 
ProfilePress – Paid Membership, Online Courses (LMS), Ecommerce, User Registration & Login Form, User Profile & Restrict Content 100K+ · 3.1★ (938) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #19 ↑3 3 too low 17 
Revopic – Photo Reviews for WooCommerce 10K+ · 4.7★ (77) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #23 ↑1 6 too low 18 
Abandoned Cart Lite for WooCommerce 20K+ · 4.1★ (84) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #24 6 too low 19 
Browser Tab Title Reminder 200+ · 5.0★ (4) thin reviews
wp.org #12 ↓1 7 too high 20 Content Reminder 10+ · 5.0★ (1) thin reviews
wp.org #3 ↑1 17 too high 21 
morkva Product Review Reminder for WooCommerce 20+ · 5.0★ (3) thin reviews
wp.org #10 11 too high 22 
Evergreen Content Poster – Auto Post and Schedule Your Best Content to Social Media 90+ · 4.1★ (13) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews
wp.org #17 ↓1 5 too high 23 
Coreem – Coupon Reminder for WooCommerce 50+ · 5.0★ (2) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews
wp.org #7 16 too high 24 N Ni Payment Reminder For WooCommerce 100+ · 2.9★ (7) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews
wp.org #9 ↓1 15 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.