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

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 “delegation”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 6 of the top 20.

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 the install base is organic or host-pushed, and its risk of being pulled.

Ranked above its merit

Device Detector shows at wp.org #6 but places #13 on merit, a gap of 7 places. Its 500+ installs carry it up the search order; its 4.0★ average from 2 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

merit plugin wp.org
1 APCu Manager 10K+ · 4.6★ (20) wp.org #1 2 OPcache Manager 2K+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #2 3 DecaLog 1K+ · 4.8★ (8) wp.org #3 4 CardanoPress – Cardano Blockchain Integration for WordPress 40+ · 5.0★ (14) wp.org #7 ↓1 3 too low 5 Library Management System 200+ · 4.4★ (14) wp.org #9 4 too low 6 Vibes 300+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #4 2 too high 7 DevtasksUp – ClickUp integration 30+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #5 2 too high 8 MailArchiver 100+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #8 9 Simple Contact Form Plugin for WordPress – WP Easy Contact 40+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #14 5 too low 10 Easy Store Management for WooCommerce 20+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #10 ↑1 11 ITX UserOps — User Management, Login Activity, Sessions & Audit Log 10+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #17 6 too low 12 Traffic 100+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #11 ↓1 1 too high 13 Device Detector 500+ · 4.0★ (2) wp.org #6 ↑1 7 too high 14 CardanoPress – Initial Stake Pool Offering Dashboard 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #13 1 too high 15 Lean SMTP 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #15 16 Kung Woo Price History for WooCommerce — · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #12 4 too high 17 WebToffee Universal Commerce Protocol Enabler for Woocommerce 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #16 1 too high 18 FormCourier Modal Window — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #18 19 PW Feed Readiness Audit for WebMCP — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #19 20 A Axismundi Navigation Icons — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #20 21 MME-Mail to SMTP — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #22 ↑1 1 too low 22 Synchronity for WooCommerce — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #24 2 too low 23 BP Devolved Authority 30+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #23 ↓1 24 Rosenheinrich Multisite Migrate – Single Site & Network Backup, Restore & AI — · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #21 3 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.