Plugin Pulse Beta
← Rankings

wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “csv api”

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 “csv api”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 13 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

WP All Import – Import Add-On for ACF shows at wp.org #7 but places #17 on merit, a gap of 10 places. Its 50K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 6 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Polylang places #12 on merit, 4.7★ from 3004 reviews, but shows at wp.org #19. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 WP Ultimate CSV Importer – WordPress CSV, XML & Excel Import Export 20K+ · 4.4★ (593) wp.org #1 2 Import and export users and customers 70K+ · 4.7★ (259) wp.org #2 3 Yoast SEO – Advanced SEO with real-time guidance and built-in AI 10M+ · 4.8★ (27821) wp.org #4 ↓1 1 too low 4 WP All Import – Drag & Drop Import for CSV, XML, Excel & Google Sheets 100K+ · 4.7★ (1966) wp.org #8 ↑2 4 too low 5 Rank Math SEO – AI SEO Tools to Dominate SEO Rankings 4M+ · 4.8★ (7519) wp.org #10 ↓5 5 too low 6 Datafeedr API 4K+ · 4.0★ (13) wp.org #3 ↓1 3 too high 7 WP All Export – Drag & Drop Export to Any Custom CSV, XML & Excel 100K+ · 4.5★ (415) wp.org #12 5 too low 8 WP All Import – Product Import for WooCommerce 20K+ · 4.7★ (276) wp.org #13 5 too low 9 CSV to HTML 300+ · 5.0★ (22) wp.org #6 ↑1 3 too high 10 Contact Form to Any API 8K+ · 5.0★ (28) wp.org #5 ↓1 5 too high 11 Get Use APIs – JSON Content Importer 5K+ · 4.9★ (78) wp.org #11 ↓5 12 Polylang 900K+ · 4.7★ (3004) wp.org #19 7 too low 13 WP Store Locator 40K+ · 4.8★ (312) wp.org #21 8 too low 14 Custom API for WP 1K+ · 4.8★ (45) wp.org #9 ↑2 5 too high 15 Ultimate Maps by Supsystic – OpenStreetMap, Leaflet & Mapbox, No API Key 10K+ · 4.6★ (86) wp.org #15 16 Advanced Shipment Tracking for WooCommerce 70K+ · 4.5★ (355) wp.org #18 ↓1 2 too low 17 WP All Import – Import Add-On for ACF 50K+ · 5.0★ (6) wp.org #7 ↑1 10 too high 18 Import WP – CSV & XML Import Export for WordPress 4K+ · 4.4★ (25) wp.org #14 4 too high 19 Media Library Tools – AI-Powered Rename, Clean & CSV Import/Export 2K+ · 4.7★ (14) wp.org #23 4 too low 20 WP Taxonomy Manager 1K+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #17 ↑1 3 too high 21 WP All Import – Import SEO Settings for Rank Math SEO 6K+ · 4.5★ (4) wp.org #16 5 too high 22 WP All Import – Import SEO Settings for Yoast SEO 20K+ · 2.8★ (11) wp.org #20 2 too high 23 WP All Import – Job Listing Import for WP Job Manager 2K+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #22 1 too high 24 API Press – External API data, Connect API, Import API 40+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #24

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.