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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “data display”

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 “data display”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 14 of the top 20. 2 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

Live Data Display shows at wp.org #15 but places #24 on merit, a gap of 9 places. Its 30+ 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

Complianz GDPR/CCPA Cookie Consent Banner places #12 on merit, 4.7★ from 1667 reviews, but shows at wp.org #18. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 WP Data Access – App Builder for Tables, Forms, Dashboards, Charts & Maps 10K+ · 4.9★ (88) wp.org #1 ↑1 2 Schema & Structured Data for WP & AMP 100K+ · 4.5★ (252) wp.org #2 ↓1 3 Elementor Website Builder – more than just a page builder 10M+ · 4.5★ (7322) wp.org #5 2 too low 4 GDPR Data Request Form 5K+ · 4.9★ (14) wp.org #3 1 too high 5 wpDataTables – WordPress Data Table, Dynamic Tables & Table Charts Plugin 60K+ · 4.5★ (449) wp.org #9 ↓2 4 too low 6 Data Tables Generator by Supsystic – Excel-like, WooCommerce & Pricing Tables 10K+ · 4.7★ (497) wp.org #10 ↑1 4 too low 7 Head Meta Data 10K+ · 4.8★ (19) wp.org #4 3 too high 8 Ninja Tables – Easy Data Table Builder 70K+ · 4.6★ (472) wp.org #11 ↓3 3 too low 9 Meta Field Block – Display Custom Fields for ACF, Meta Box and More 10K+ · 5.0★ (57) wp.org #6 3 too high 10 LiteSpeed Cache 7M+ · 4.8★ (2778) wp.org #14 ↓1 4 too low 11 Essential Addons for Elementor – Popular Elementor Templates & Widgets 1M+ · 4.9★ (4132) wp.org #16 5 too low 12 Complianz GDPR/CCPA Cookie Consent Banner 1M+ · 4.7★ (1667) wp.org #18 6 too low 13 Display Post Types – Post Grid, post list and post sliders 8K+ · 5.0★ (26) wp.org #7 ↑2 6 too high 14 Conditionally display featured image on singular posts and pages 30K+ · 4.8★ (38) wp.org #13 ↑2 1 too high 15 Magical Posts Display – Elementor Advanced Posts widgets 3K+ · 4.4★ (10) wp.org #8 ↑2 7 too high 16 Display Eventbrite Events 2K+ · 4.9★ (27) wp.org #20 ↓1 4 too low 17 D Display custom fields in the frontend – Post and User Profile Fields 500+ · 5.0★ (8) wp.org #12 ↑2 5 too high 18 Posts Table with Search & Sort 3K+ · 4.6★ (19) wp.org #22 4 too low 19 Product Sort and Display for WooCommerce 2K+ · 3.1★ (45) wp.org #19 ↓2 20 Data Source for Contact Form 7 300+ · 5.0★ (8) wp.org #21 ↓3 1 too low 21 Magical Shop Builder – WooCommerce Template Builder for Elementor | Shop, Cart, Checkout & Product Page Builder 3K+ · 5.0★ (9) wp.org #23 ↓1 2 too low 22 Smart Custom Display Name 200+ · 5.0★ (5) wp.org #17 5 too high 23 affiliate-toolkit – Multi-Network Affiliate & Amazon Product Display 2K+ · 4.5★ (22) wp.org #24 1 too low 24 Live Data Display 30+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #15 ↑8 9 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.