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

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 “cos”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 11 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

Cost Calculator for Elementor shows at wp.org #11 but places #19 on merit, a gap of 8 places. Its 500+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 2 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Username Changer places #11 on merit, 4.3★ from 77 reviews, but shows at wp.org #22. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Co-Authors, Multiple Authors and Guest Authors in an Author Box with PublishPress Authors 20K+ · 4.9★ (114) wp.org #1 2 Molongui Authorship – Author Boxes, Guest Authors & Co-Authors for WordPress 10K+ · 4.7★ (158) wp.org #3 1 too low 3 WPForms – AI Form Builder for WordPress – Contact Forms, Payment Forms, Survey Form, Quiz & More 5M+ · 4.8★ (14387) wp.org #7 ↓1 4 too low 4 Jetpack – AI Agents & MCP, Security, Backup & Analytics 3M+ · 3.7★ (2408) wp.org #5 1 too low 5 GTM4WP – A Google Tag Manager (GTM) plugin for WordPress 700K+ · 4.5★ (155) wp.org #6 ↓1 1 too low 6 Sync QCloud COS 500+ · 5.0★ (6) wp.org #2 4 too high 7 Co-Authors Plus 20K+ · 3.5★ (77) wp.org #4 3 too high 8 Product Feed PRO for WooCommerce by AdTribes – Product Feeds for WooCommerce 80K+ · 4.7★ (1072) wp.org #15 7 too low 9 Simple Author Box 90K+ · 4.3★ (115) wp.org #9 ↓1 10 Author Avatars List/Block 4K+ · 4.8★ (32) wp.org #12 ↓2 2 too low 11 Username Changer 40K+ · 4.3★ (77) wp.org #22 ↓1 11 too low 12 WP Post Author – Author Box, Multiple Authors, Guest Authors & Custom Avatars 10K+ · 4.2★ (22) wp.org #14 ↓2 2 too low 13 Cost Calculator for Contact Form 7 – Price Calculator Free 5K+ · 3.8★ (15) wp.org #10 ↑1 3 too high 14 Sensei LMS – Online Courses, Quizzes, & Learning 9K+ · 3.5★ (40) wp.org #19 ↓1 5 too low 15 WPCOS腾讯云对象存储COS 300+ · 3.7★ (6) wp.org #8 ↓1 7 too high 16 InPost PL 10K+ · 3.8★ (12) wp.org #17 ↓4 1 too low 17 VietQR 4K+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #13 4 too high 18 Amazon Pay for WooCommerce 10K+ · 2.5★ (27) wp.org #23 ↓1 5 too low 19 Cost Calculator for Elementor 500+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #11 ↓2 8 too high 20 Impressum 4K+ · 3.7★ (6) wp.org #20 ↓3 21 Cost Calculator & Cost Estimation 100+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #24 ↓4 3 too low 22 eRecht24 Legal Texts 50K+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #18 ↓2 4 too high 23 zipMoney(Zip Co) Payments Plugin for WooCommerce 2K+ · 2.8★ (8) wp.org #16 ↓2 7 too high 24 LearnPress – Prerequisites Courses 5K+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #21 ↓2 3 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.