Plugin Pulse Beta
← Rankings

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

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 “counties”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 10 of the top 20. 8 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

Checkout & Store Toolkit for WooCommerce shows at wp.org #10 but places #19 on merit, a gap of 9 places. Its 800+ 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

PI Advanced Flat rate / Conditional shipping for WooCommerce places #7 on merit, 4.9★ from 58 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 MapGeo – Interactive Geo Maps 30K+ · 4.4★ (65) wp.org #1 2 Bulk Page Generator and Mass Page Builder – Page Generator 3K+ · 4.6★ (70) wp.org #3 1 too low 3 HTML5 Maps 4K+ · 4.6★ (45) wp.org #4 1 too low 4 Location Pack for WooCommerce 800+ · 5.0★ (11) wp.org #2 2 too high 5 12 Step Meeting List 900+ · 5.0★ (28) wp.org #6 ↓1 1 too low 6 Raffle Play Woocommerce 700+ · 5.0★ (21) wp.org #5 ↑1 1 too high 7 PI Advanced Flat rate / Conditional shipping for WooCommerce 2K+ · 4.9★ (58) wp.org #23 ↑1 16 too low 8 Address Autocomplete Anything – Google Address Autocomplete for Any Form 900+ · 5.0★ (16) wp.org #15 7 too low 9 TaxJar – Sales Tax Automation for WooCommerce 5K+ · 2.6★ (28) wp.org #9 10 IMPress for IDX Broker 7K+ · 3.1★ (34) wp.org #13 ↑1 3 too low 11 GazChap's WooCommerce Purchase Order Payment Gateway 200+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #11 ↓1 12 UK Address Postcode Validation 700+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #12 ↑1 13 SimpleMaps 600+ · 4.8★ (10) wp.org #18 ↓2 5 too low 14 SimplyRETS Real Estate IDX 200+ · 4.9★ (8) wp.org #20 ↓2 6 too low 15 Colete-Online 600+ · 3.8★ (5) wp.org #7 8 too high 16 DPD Baltic Shipping 2K+ · 2.7★ (13) wp.org #8 8 too high 17 SEO Landing Page Generator 50+ · 4.0★ (4) wp.org #14 ↓2 3 too high 18 SamedayCourier Shipping 4K+ · 2.7★ (14) wp.org #19 ↓2 1 too low 19 Checkout & Store Toolkit for WooCommerce 800+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #10 ↑1 9 too high 20 List Locations BMLT 80+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #21 1 too low 21 MatrixMap – Google Maps, OpenStreetMap, Store Locator & World Maps 200+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #17 ↑2 4 too high 22 ingenidev UK Zones and Counties for WC — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #24 ↓1 2 too low 23 Custom Shipping Zones for WooCommerce 100+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #16 7 too high 24 Shipping Option Conditions for WooCommerce 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #22 2 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.