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

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 “dojo”, we and wp.org disagree on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 11 of the top 20. 6 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

CartNinja – WordPress Shopping Cart shows at wp.org #14 but places #20 on merit, a gap of 6 places. Its 10+ installs carry it up the search order; its 4.0★ average from 1 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Hide Title places #2 on merit, 3.7★ from 87 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 signals wp.org

WP eBay Product Feeds 700+ · 4.7★ (17) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews wp.org #5 4 too low 2 H Hide Title 30K+ · 3.7★ (87) closure risk stale but ranked wp.org #10 ↓1 8 too low 3 L Live CSS Preview 300+ · 5.0★ (2) thin reviews wp.org #2 1 too high 4

Dojo for WooCommerce 800+ · 5.0★ (1) thin reviews wp.org #1 3 too high 5 U Use Google Libraries 10K+ · 4.4★ (47) closure risk wp.org #11 6 too low 6

Store Locator Widget 300+ · 3.7★ (3) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews wp.org #3 3 too high 7

Martial Arts Club Manager — · 0.0★ (0) thin reviewslow rating, top placement wp.org #4 3 too high 8 S Shadowbox JS 1K+ · 4.6★ (9) throws errorsnot PHP-currentclosure risk thin reviews wp.org #18 10 too low 9 Y Yes-co ORES 10+ · 0.0★ (0) thin reviews wp.org #7 2 too high 10

Acoustic Connect integration for WooCommerce — · 0.0★ (0) thin reviews wp.org #8 2 too high 11

Dojo (beta) 10+ · 3.0★ (2) closure risk thin reviewsstale but ranked wp.org #6 5 too high 12 W Widget Display Options 40+ · 4.3★ (4) throws errorsnot PHP-currentclosure risk thin reviews wp.org #13 1 too low 13

Google Trends Widget 10+ · 5.0★ (1) closure risk thin reviewsstale but ranked wp.org #9 ↑1 4 too high 14 P Plugin Name: Spotify Play Button for WordPress 10+ · 0.0★ (0) closure risk thin reviews wp.org #15 1 too low 15 C CodeLibs 10+ · 0.0★ (0) closure risk thin reviews wp.org #16 1 too low 16 G Google Hosted AJAX Libraries 10+ · 0.0★ (0) closure risk thin reviews wp.org #17 1 too low 17

WP-Nafudakake Dojo Rank Board Generator 10+ · 0.0★ (0) throws errorsnot PHP-currentclosure risk thin reviews wp.org #12 5 too high 18 Z Zen-Carousel — · 0.0★ (0) closure risk thin reviews wp.org #19 1 too low 19 W WP-ZFF Zend Framework Full 10+ · 0.0★ (0) closure risk thin reviews wp.org #21 2 too low 20 C CartNinja – WordPress Shopping Cart 10+ · 4.0★ (1) throws errorsnot PHP-currentclosure risk thin reviews wp.org #14 6 too high 21 C CDN Tools 10+ · 1.0★ (1) throws errorsnot PHP-currentclosure risk thin reviews wp.org #20 1 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.