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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “e privacy”

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 “e privacy”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 14 of the top 20. 5 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

Cryptex | E-Mail Address Protection shows at wp.org #10 but places #21 on merit, a gap of 11 places. Its 800+ installs carry it up the search order; its 4.0★ average from 4 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

All-In-One Security (AIOS) – Security and Firewall places #11 on merit, 4.7★ from 1720 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 wp.org
1 Forminator Forms – Contact Form, Payment Form & Custom Form Builder 600K+ · 4.8★ (2143) wp.org #1 ↑1 2 Yoast SEO – Advanced SEO with real-time guidance and built-in AI 10M+ · 4.8★ (27821) wp.org #4 ↑4 2 too low 3 Complianz GDPR/CCPA Cookie Consent Banner 1M+ · 4.7★ (1668) wp.org #5 ↑1 2 too low 4 E-cab Taxi Booking Manager for Woocommerce 2K+ · 4.9★ (28) wp.org #3 ↑1 1 too high 5 Widgets for Google Reviews 1M+ · 4.9★ (2667) wp.org #8 3 too low 6 Germanized for WooCommerce 70K+ · 4.8★ (496) wp.org #9 3 too low 7 Pixel Manager for WooCommerce – Conversion Tracking, Google Ads, GA4, TikTok, Dynamic Remarketing 40K+ · 4.9★ (399) wp.org #12 ↑6 5 too low 8 F4 Shipping Phone and E-Mail for WooCommerce 700+ · 5.0★ (8) wp.org #2 ↑1 6 too high 9 Conversios – GA4, Google Ads & Meta Conversion Tracking with Product Feed for WooCommerce 10K+ · 4.3★ (206) wp.org #7 ↓2 2 too high 10 Antispam Bee 700K+ · 4.8★ (226) wp.org #13 ↓1 3 too low 11 All-In-One Security (AIOS) – Security and Firewall 1M+ · 4.7★ (1720) wp.org #17 ↑4 6 too low 12 WeShareAI – AI-Powered Share Buttons (formerly E-MAILiT) 600+ · 4.3★ (65) wp.org #6 ↑1 6 too high 13 PrettyLinks – Affiliate Link Management, URL Shortener, Link Cloaking, Tracking & Branded Short Links 200K+ · 4.8★ (1322) wp.org #22 9 too low 14 ElementsKit Elementor Addons – Advanced Widgets & Templates Addons for Elementor 1M+ · 4.9★ (2051) wp.org #23 9 too low 15 The SEO Framework – Fast, Automated, Effortless. 200K+ · 4.9★ (380) wp.org #20 5 too low 16 Newsletter – Send awesome emails from WordPress 200K+ · 4.6★ (1205) wp.org #19 3 too low 17 Product Feed Manager for WooCommerce – CTX Feed – Support 220+ Shopping, AI & Social Channels 90K+ · 4.6★ (838) wp.org #21 ↓5 4 too low 18 FAZ Cookie Manager 3K+ · 5.0★ (30) wp.org #16 ↓2 2 too high 19 PixelYourSite – Your smart PIXEL (TAG) & API Manager 400K+ · 4.3★ (281) wp.org #24 5 too low 20 ShipWorks Connector for Woocommerce 200+ · 4.8★ (10) wp.org #14 ↑1 6 too high 21 Cryptex | E-Mail Address Protection 800+ · 4.0★ (4) wp.org #10 11 too high 22 Usercentrics Privacy Policy Generator 1K+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #11 11 too high 23 RoleMaster Suite – User Role Editor for E-Commerce, Membership & Admin Panel 700+ · 3.7★ (3) wp.org #18 ↑2 5 too high 24 WP Consent API 200K+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #15 ↓2 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.