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

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 “duties”, we and wp.org disagree on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 12 of the top 20. 3 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

USPS Shipping for WooCommerce – Live Rates shows at wp.org #17 but places #24 on merit, a gap of 7 places. Its 40+ 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

Property Hive places #3 on merit, 4.9★ from 96 reviews, but shows at wp.org #7. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Easyship WooCommerce Shipping Rates 2K+ · 4.2★ (54) wp.org #2 1 too low 2 Property Hive Stamp Duty Calculator 800+ · 3.8★ (5) wp.org #1 1 too high 3 Property Hive 3K+ · 4.9★ (96) wp.org #7 4 too low 4 GNU Terry Pratchett 1K+ · 5.0★ (13) wp.org #4 5 Vachr Short-Term Rental Reservations 30+ · 4.3★ (6) wp.org #9 ↑7 4 too low 6 Shipping Live Rates for DHL Express for WooCommerce 600+ · 4.2★ (5) wp.org #8 2 too low 7 EAS EU compliance 200+ · 5.0★ (7) wp.org #11 ↓1 4 too low 8 Easy Invoice – Invoice Generator, PDF Quotes & Payments 600+ · 4.4★ (7) wp.org #13 ↓2 5 too low 9 EdgeTariff – Duty and Tax for WooCommerce 10+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #3 6 too high 10 Enfants IMG Performer 40+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #20 10 too low 11 Customs – EU Import Duty for WooCommerce 10+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #5 ↑1 6 too high 12 Tabby Checkout 4K+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #6 ↓1 6 too high 13 Dutify – Duty & Tax for WooCommerce 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #12 1 too high 14 Gaming-Plus Game Server Status 20+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #10 ↑5 4 too high 15 TUNL Shipping for WooCommerce 90+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #15 ↓1 16 Herroeping – Herroepingsknop for WooCommerce 100+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #18 ↑1 2 too low 17 Teleship Global Shipping 10+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #14 ↓1 3 too high 18 UPS Global Checkout™ Plugin For WooCommerce 20+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #19 ↑2 1 too low 19 Klarvo AI Transparency for EU AI Act 20+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #16 ↑1 3 too high 20 ShipperHQ: Shipping & Checkout Experience Solution 200+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #21 ↑1 1 too low 21 AIM Transparency – AI Disclosure for EU AI Act 90+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #22 ↑1 1 too low 22 Zamok – Security and Site Tools 100+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #23 ↓3 1 too low 23 EU Parcel Tariff for WooCommerce — · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #24 1 too low 24 USPS Shipping for WooCommerce – Live Rates 40+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #17 ↑1 7 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.