wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “domain availability”

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 “domain availability”, we and wp.org disagree on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 10 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

Domain Search for WHMCS shows at wp.org #3 but places #19 on merit, a gap of 16 places. Its 100+ 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

Appointment Booking Plugin – LatePoint | Calendar & Scheduling for WordPress places #10 on merit, 4.9★ from 106 reviews, but shows at wp.org #17. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin signals wp.org

UpdraftPlus: WP Backup & Migration Plugin 4M+ · 4.8★ (8706) wp.org #2 1 too low 2

WP24 Domain Check 4K+ · 4.3★ (32) wp.org #1 1 too high 3

Events Manager – Calendar, Bookings, Tickets, Appointments and more! 60K+ · 4.2★ (551) not PHP-current wp.org #4 1 too low 4

BlogVault Backup & Staging 80K+ · 4.6★ (332) wp.org #6 2 too low 5

All-In-One Security (AIOS) – Security and Firewall 1M+ · 4.7★ (1720) wp.org #9 ↑1 4 too low 6

Speed Optimizer – The All-In-One Performance-Boosting Plugin 1M+ · 4.2★ (641) wp.org #8 ↑1 2 too low 7

Advanced iFrame 40K+ · 4.4★ (54) wp.org #7 8

AWP Classifieds 3K+ · 4.6★ (301) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #12 ↑5 4 too low 9

PPOM – Product Addons & Custom Fields for WooCommerce 20K+ · 4.5★ (283) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #11 ↑9 2 too low 10

Appointment Booking Plugin – LatePoint | Calendar & Scheduling for WordPress 100K+ · 4.9★ (106) wp.org #17 ↓1 7 too low 11

Extra Product Sorting Options for WooCommerce 10K+ · 4.6★ (31) wp.org #10 ↓2 1 too high 12

Fluent Booking – The Ultimate Appointments Scheduling, Events Booking, Events Calendar Solution 20K+ · 4.7★ (46) wp.org #20 ↓6 8 too low 13

Sucuri Security – Auditing, Malware Scanner and Security Hardening 600K+ · 4.2★ (386) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #16 ↓1 3 too low 14

Dominion – Domain Checker for WPBakery 50+ · 3.5★ (8) thin reviews wp.org #5 9 too high 15

Notifima – WooCommerce Stock Manager, Inventory Management, Waitlist 2K+ · 4.4★ (46) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #14 ↓2 1 too high 16

CF7 Apps – Addons for Contact Form 7 (Honeypot, Database, Redirection, Webhook, etc.) 300K+ · 3.8★ (135) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #15 ↑7 1 too high 17

MxChat – AI Chatbot & Content Generation for WordPress 2K+ · 5.0★ (31) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #22 ↓1 5 too low 18

SpeedyCache – Cache, Optimization, Performance 500K+ · 4.4★ (30) host-installed base wp.org #23 5 too low 19

Domain Search for WHMCS 100+ · 5.0★ (1) thin reviews wp.org #3 16 too high 20

Bookit — Booking & Appointment Calendar 4K+ · 3.8★ (24) thin reviews wp.org #24 ↓1 4 too low 21

ChatHelp – Click to Chat Button, Chat to Order for WooCommerce & Floating Chat Form 2K+ · 4.4★ (9) thin reviews wp.org #21 22

Innovs WPBakery Visual Composer WHMCS Elements 1K+ · 4.6★ (5) thin reviews wp.org #13 ↓2 9 too high 23

OWH Domain WHOIS RDAP — · 5.0★ (1) thin reviews wp.org #18 5 too high 24

Jotform – AI Chatbot 5K+ · 5.0★ (1) thin reviews wp.org #19 5 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.