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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “copyright”

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 “copyright”, we and wp.org disagree on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 15 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

Dynamic Copyright Year Customizer shows at wp.org #2 but places #19 on merit, a gap of 17 places. Its 200+ 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

Ultimate Addons for Elementor – Widgets, Templates, WooCommerce & Header Footer Builder places #6 on merit, 4.9★ from 2528 reviews, but shows at wp.org #23. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 UpdraftPlus: WP Backup & Migration Plugin 4M+ · 4.8★ (8708) wp.org #5 4 too low 2 ElementsKit Elementor Addons – Advanced Widgets & Templates Addons for Elementor 1M+ · 4.9★ (2051) wp.org #7 ↑1 5 too low 3 WPBruiser Security – No CAPTCHA Anti-Spam & Login Protection 10K+ · 4.6★ (213) wp.org #6 3 too low 4 Change Storefront Footer Copyright Text 3K+ · 4.9★ (34) wp.org #4 5 Photo Gallery, Sliders, Proofing and Themes – NextGEN Gallery 300K+ · 4.3★ (4342) wp.org #8 ↓2 3 too low 6 Ultimate Addons for Elementor – Widgets, Templates, WooCommerce & Header Footer Builder 2M+ · 4.9★ (2528) wp.org #23 17 too low 7 Footer Copyright 500+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #1 6 too high 8 Getwid – Gutenberg Blocks 50K+ · 4.7★ (115) wp.org #21 ↓1 13 too low 9 One User Avatar | User Profile Picture 100K+ · 4.7★ (41) wp.org #18 ↓1 9 too low 10 Secure Copy Content Protection and Content Locking 20K+ · 4.3★ (62) wp.org #20 ↓1 10 too low 11 WP-Copyright-Protection 5K+ · 4.4★ (21) wp.org #13 ↓4 2 too low 12 Timetable and Event Schedule by MotoPress 30K+ · 4.3★ (69) wp.org #24 ↓10 12 too low 13 M Mesmerize Companion 50K+ · 4.4★ (51) wp.org #22 ↓1 9 too low 14 Ocean Extra 400K+ · 3.3★ (67) wp.org #15 ↓3 1 too low 15 Ocean Social Sharing 60K+ · 4.5★ (11) wp.org #12 ↑1 3 too high 16 O One Page Express Companion 10K+ · 4.7★ (11) wp.org #17 ↓1 1 too low 17 Dynamic Copyright Year 800+ · 3.0★ (3) wp.org #3 14 too high 18 Meta for WooCommerce 400K+ · 2.1★ (481) wp.org #11 7 too high 19 Dynamic Copyright Year Customizer 200+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #2 17 too high 20 Current Year, Symbols and IP Shortcode 10K+ · 5.0★ (5) wp.org #19 ↓1 1 too high 21 Smart Copyright Year (Lite) – Auto Current Year Updater Shortcode 200+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #14 ↓4 7 too high 22 Copyright notice 40+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #9 ↓2 13 too high 23 Ocean Product Sharing 20K+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #16 ↓1 7 too high 24 PicDefense.io – Your Guard Against Image Copyright Infringement 100+ · 2.7★ (3) wp.org #10 ↑1 14 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.