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← Rankings

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

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 “dnt”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 7 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

TrustArc Cookie Consent Manager shows at wp.org #12 but places #24 on merit, a gap of 12 places. Its 30+ installs carry it up the search order; its 1.0★ 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 #4 on merit, 4.7★ from 1667 reviews, but shows at wp.org #10. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 WP Statistics – Simple, privacy-friendly Google Analytics alternative 500K+ · 4.1★ (758) wp.org #1 2 EmbedPress 100K+ · 4.8★ (307) wp.org #2 3 Gutenslider — Slider Block for the Block Editor 10K+ · 4.0★ (65) wp.org #4 1 too low 4 Complianz GDPR/CCPA Cookie Consent Banner 1M+ · 4.7★ (1667) wp.org #10 ↑3 6 too low 5 IL Privacy & Cookie Consent 200+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #3 2 too high 6 TrackSure Cloud – Server-Side Tracking, Meta CAPI & GA4 for WooCommerce 70+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #6 7 Mimporto Traffic Analytics – Visitor Statistics 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #7 8 KD Tracking Connector for OpenPanel 20+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #8 9 SFR Analytics 20+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #9 10 Quantely Activity 10+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #5 5 too high 11 Statnive – Privacy-first Analytics + Revenue Reports for WooCommerce 30+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #11 12 LolaCore for Statistics 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #13 ↓3 1 too low 13 Qaiyo Social Video Embed 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #14 1 too low 14 SysRadar — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #17 3 too low 15 MoxKit Addons for Elementor 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #18 3 too low 16 CookieKita — GDPR Consent & Cookie Banner 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #19 ↓1 3 too low 17 No Cookie Analytics – By Arfa — · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #15 2 too high 18 Visitor Lens 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #20 ↓1 2 too low 19 JB Atomic Analytics — · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #16 3 too high 20 Calucon Third-Party Embed Gate 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #21 ↓1 1 too low 21 Logspot — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #22 ↓1 1 too low 22 Shrikant Visitor Tracker — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #23 ↓1 1 too low 23 Eorisis Analytics — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #24 ↓1 1 too low 24 TrustArc Cookie Consent Manager 30+ · 1.0★ (1) wp.org #12 12 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.