wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “disable category”
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 “disable category”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 11 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
Category Description for WooCommerce shows at wp.org #14 but places #23 on merit, a gap of 9 places. Its 700+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 2 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
Buried gem
Relevanssi – A Better Search places #9 on merit, 4.8★ from 406 reviews, but shows at wp.org #20. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.
Disable WP REST API 30K+ · 4.8★ (36)
wp.org #1 2 
Ultimate Category Excluder 50K+ · 4.3★ (78)
wp.org #2 3 
Category Posts Block 40K+ · 4.5★ (79)
wp.org #4 ↑1 1 too low 4 
Category AJAX Filter – Posts, Custom Post Types & Product Filter 6K+ · 4.9★ (158)
wp.org #5 ↓2 1 too low 5 
Admin and Site Enhancements (ASE) 200K+ · 5.0★ (423)
wp.org #9 ↑2 4 too low 6 
Disable WP Notification 10K+ · 4.3★ (12) thin reviews
wp.org #3 ↑1 3 too high 7 
Schedule Post Changes With PublishPress Future: Unpublish, Delete, Change Status, Trash, Change Categories 100K+ · 4.5★ (172)
wp.org #10 ↓1 3 too low 8 
PiWeb Disable payment method / Partial payment for WooCommerce 4K+ · 5.0★ (38)
wp.org #8 9 Relevanssi – A Better Search 100K+ · 4.8★ (406)
wp.org #20 11 too low 10 
Disable Blog 20K+ · 4.7★ (14) thin reviews
wp.org #7 3 too high 11 A Allow HTML in Category Descriptions 8K+ · 5.0★ (41)
wp.org #12 1 too low 12 
Disable Feeds WP 10K+ · 5.0★ (7) thin reviews
wp.org #6 6 too high 13 
Category Posts in Custom Menu 2K+ · 4.8★ (43)
wp.org #13 14 
Categories Images 50K+ · 4.5★ (86)
wp.org #16 2 too low 15 
Freesoul Deactivate Plugins – Disable plugins on individual WordPress pages 8K+ · 4.8★ (104)
wp.org #19 4 too low 16 
WP Super Cache 1M+ · 4.3★ (1346)
wp.org #23 7 too low 17 
Blog Filter – Post Grid Filter by Category or Tag 7K+ · 4.9★ (81)
wp.org #22 5 too low 18 
Disable Right Click RB – Content Copy Protection, Prevent Copy & No Right Click 600+ · 4.2★ (14) thin reviews
wp.org #11 ↓1 7 too high 19 
WP Categories Widget 6K+ · 4.5★ (27)
wp.org #21 2 too low 20 
Product Category Slider for WooCommerce 700+ · 4.0★ (20) thin reviews
wp.org #18 2 too high 21 
RDV Category Image 300+ · 5.0★ (3) thin reviews
wp.org #17 4 too high 22 
Disable Media Permalink by Hardweb.it 800+ · 4.1★ (7) thin reviews
wp.org #24 2 too low 23 Category Description for WooCommerce 700+ · 5.0★ (2) thin reviews
wp.org #14 9 too high 24 
Product Category 300+ · 5.0★ (2) thin reviews
wp.org #15 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.