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

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 howdy”, we and wp.org disagree on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 9 of the top 20. 1 plugin is 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

Comfortable Admin Page shows at wp.org #10 but places #20 on merit, a gap of 10 places. Its 70+ 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

IgnitionDeck Crowdfunding Platform places #8 on merit, 3.7★ from 90 reviews, but shows at wp.org #12. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Ultimate Dashboard – Custom WordPress Dashboard 50K+ · 4.6★ (114) wp.org #3 2 too low 2 Adminify – White Label, Admin Menu Editor, Login Customizer 6K+ · 4.3★ (109) wp.org #4 2 too low 3 Ultimate Client Dash 2K+ · 4.8★ (10) wp.org #2 1 too high 4 AGCA – Custom Dashboard & Login Page 20K+ · 4.5★ (64) wp.org #7 ↓1 3 too low 5 Admin Bar Editor – Toolbar Customization with User Role based access & Custom menus 3K+ · 4.4★ (24) wp.org #6 ↑1 1 too low 6 White Label – WordPress Custom Admin, Custom Login Page, and Custom Dashboard 10K+ · 5.0★ (21) wp.org #8 2 too low 7 W WP Easy Replace Howdy 100+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #1 6 too high 8 IgnitionDeck Crowdfunding Platform 100+ · 3.7★ (90) wp.org #12 4 too low 9 Slash Admin 500+ · 5.0★ (9) wp.org #9 10 Text Replace – Find and Replace WordPress Strings 300+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #5 5 too high 11 Admin Customizer 1K+ · 4.9★ (16) wp.org #17 6 too low 12 Remove Howdy 700+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #21 9 too low 13 Essential WP Tools – Customize WP Features, Security, SEO, Speed, Share Buttons, Ad, Maintenance & much more 10+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #18 5 too low 14 Unstoppable White Label 30+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #13 1 too high 15 Quiet Admin – Hide Admin Notices, Disable Comments, Clean Dashboard & More 30+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #11 4 too high 16 Feature Flipper 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #15 1 too high 17 Webknit Site Toolkit — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #16 1 too high 18 Arik Admin Screen Customizer — · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #14 4 too high 19 Cubecolour Caboodle — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #19 20 Comfortable Admin Page 70+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #10 10 too high 21 Edminboost – Admin white label, Menu Editor, theme, topbar shortcuts — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #20 1 too high 22 Custom Howdy 10+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #22 23 WP Custom Admin Dashboard 30+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #23 24 Admin Bar Menu Packer 70+ · 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.