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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “customize admin”

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 “customize admin”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 9 of the top 20. 3 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

Customize Admin shows at wp.org #2 but places #12 on merit, a gap of 10 places. Its 3K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 3.6★ average from 5 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

LiteSpeed Cache places #9 on merit, 4.8★ from 2778 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 Admin and Site Enhancements (ASE) 200K+ · 5.0★ (423) wp.org #1 2 Admin Columns 100K+ · 4.9★ (1652) wp.org #3 1 too low 3 Elementor Website Builder – more than just a page builder 10M+ · 4.5★ (7322) wp.org #5 2 too low 4 WooCommerce 7M+ · 4.5★ (4833) wp.org #6 2 too low 5 Admin Custom Login 10K+ · 4.6★ (388) wp.org #11 ↓4 6 too low 6 My WP Customize Admin/Frontend 8K+ · 4.3★ (16) wp.org #4 2 too high 7 BrikPanel: WooCommerce Dashboard & Analytics, Abandoned Cart Recovery, Order Export, Inventory Management & Bulk Editor 1K+ · 5.0★ (55) wp.org #7 ↑4 8 WP Custom Admin Interface 30K+ · 4.7★ (160) wp.org #10 ↓2 2 too low 9 LiteSpeed Cache 7M+ · 4.8★ (2778) wp.org #22 13 too low 10 Simple Admin Language Change 10K+ · 4.7★ (22) wp.org #9 ↑1 1 too high 11 View Admin As 9K+ · 4.9★ (49) wp.org #14 ↓1 3 too low 12 Customize Admin 3K+ · 3.6★ (5) wp.org #2 10 too high 13 Controlled Admin Access 10K+ · 4.8★ (45) wp.org #15 ↓1 2 too low 14 StoreCustomizer – A plugin to Customize all WooCommerce Pages 20K+ · 4.8★ (127) wp.org #21 7 too low 15 Admin Notices Manager 10K+ · 4.9★ (21) wp.org #13 ↓1 2 too high 16 SysBasics Customize My Account for WooCommerce – Live My Account Customizer 7K+ · 4.2★ (33) wp.org #8 ↑1 8 too high 17 Admin Bar Editor – Toolbar Customization with User Role based access & Custom menus 3K+ · 4.4★ (24) wp.org #12 ↑3 5 too high 18 Add Admin CSS 10K+ · 4.9★ (35) wp.org #23 ↑1 5 too low 19 All In One Login 60K+ · 3.6★ (35) wp.org #16 ↑2 3 too high 20 Admin Bookmarks 500+ · 5.0★ (9) wp.org #24 4 too low 21 Admin Search 1K+ · 4.5★ (18) wp.org #20 1 too high 22 WPC Admin Columns 1K+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #18 ↓2 4 too high 23 Customize Private & Protected: Password Form & Prefix 400+ · 4.7★ (3) wp.org #19 ↑2 4 too high 24 Customize My Account Page 500+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #17 7 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.