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← Rankings

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

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 “elevation”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 12 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

IP2Location Variables shows at wp.org #12 but places #23 on merit, a gap of 11 places. Its 100+ installs carry it up the search order; its 2.3★ average from 3 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Leaflet Maps Marker (Google Maps, OpenStreetMap, Bing Maps) places #6 on merit, 4.6★ from 244 reviews, but shows at wp.org #15. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Waymark 900+ · 5.0★ (54) wp.org #1 2 Extensions for Leaflet Map 3K+ · 5.0★ (24) wp.org #3 ↓1 1 too low 3 WP GPX Maps 4K+ · 4.1★ (59) wp.org #4 1 too low 4 Mapster WP Maps 3K+ · 4.9★ (54) wp.org #7 3 too low 5 GPX Route Map 100+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #2 ↑1 3 too high 6 Leaflet Maps Marker (Google Maps, OpenStreetMap, Bing Maps) 9K+ · 4.6★ (244) wp.org #15 9 too low 7 Geolocation 300+ · 4.2★ (10) wp.org #6 1 too high 8 OS DataHub Maps 200+ · 5.0★ (16) wp.org #11 ↓1 3 too low 9 GPX Viewer 900+ · 3.8★ (8) wp.org #5 ↓1 4 too high 10 IP2Location Tags 200+ · 3.7★ (9) wp.org #9 1 too high 11 WP-Force Images Download 90+ · 4.9★ (8) wp.org #17 ↓1 6 too low 12 Simple Location 300+ · 4.6★ (8) wp.org #16 ↓11 4 too low 13 Run Log 20+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #8 5 too high 14 Celestial Lunar Phase Widget 50+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #10 ↑1 4 too high 15 Block for Strava 70+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #13 ↑1 2 too high 16 Elevation Magic Link Login — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #14 ↓1 2 too high 17 Elevation Blocks — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #19 ↓2 2 too low 18 E Ethwebs Role Auditor — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #21 ↓1 3 too low 19 Mapthread 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #22 ↓1 3 too low 20 B Box Tracker Online 20+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #23 ↓1 3 too low 21 MatrixMap – Google Maps, OpenStreetMap, Store Locator & World Maps 200+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #18 ↑1 3 too high 22 P PeakMaps — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #24 ↓1 2 too low 23 IP2Location Variables 100+ · 2.3★ (3) wp.org #12 11 too high 24 ButtonCraft Animated Buttons – With Click Analytics — · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #20 ↓2 4 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.