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

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 “equal”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 9 of the top 20.

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 the install base is organic or host-pushed, and its risk of being pulled.

Ranked above its merit

matchHeight shows at wp.org #6 but places #17 on merit, a gap of 11 places. Its 2K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 8 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Widget Options – Advanced Conditional Visibility for Gutenberg Blocks & Classic Widgets places #9 on merit, 4.9★ from 1516 reviews, but shows at wp.org #18. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin signals wp.org

Equal Height Columns 10K+ · 4.9★ (41) wp.org #1 2

Premium Addons for Elementor – AI-Ready Elementor Addons, Widgets & Templates 600K+ · 4.9★ (1680) wp.org #2 ↑1 3

My Calendar – Accessible Event Manager 20K+ · 4.7★ (159) wp.org #3 ↓1 4

Cookie Compliance for WordPress – Cookie Consent, GDPR & CCPA 800K+ · 4.8★ (3026) wp.org #5 ↑1 1 too low 5

Equalize Digital Accessibility Checker – WCAG, ADA, EAA and Section 508 compliance 10K+ · 4.9★ (80) wp.org #4 1 too high 6

WP Bulk Delete 90K+ · 4.6★ (131) wp.org #7 1 too low 7

Fluent Forms – Customizable Contact Forms, Survey, Quiz, & Conversational Form Builder 800K+ · 4.8★ (807) wp.org #10 ↑4 3 too low 8

Visibility Logic for Elementor 20K+ · 4.8★ (58) wp.org #8 9

Widget Options – Advanced Conditional Visibility for Gutenberg Blocks & Classic Widgets 100K+ · 4.9★ (1516) wp.org #18 ↑3 9 too low 10

Conditional Fields for Elementor Form – Apply Conditional Logic 10K+ · 4.7★ (32) wp.org #9 1 too high 11

Ninja Tables – Easy Data Table Builder 70K+ · 4.6★ (472) wp.org #19 ↓4 8 too low 12

Custom Order Status Manager for WooCommerce 30K+ · 4.7★ (117) wp.org #15 ↑2 3 too low 13

WP Accessibility Helper (WAH) 10K+ · 4.7★ (57) wp.org #13 ↓2 1 too high 15

Checkout Field Editor (Checkout Manager) for WooCommerce 2K+ · 4.7★ (40) wp.org #11 ↓1 4 too high 16

Advanced Queries 10K+ · 4.9★ (40) wp.org #14 ↓1 2 too high 17

matchHeight 2K+ · 5.0★ (8) thin reviews wp.org #6 ↓1 11 too high 18

Advanced Woo Search – Product Search for WooCommerce 60K+ · 4.8★ (248) wp.org #23 ↓7 5 too low 19

Speed Booster Pack ⚡ PageSpeed Optimization Suite 8K+ · 4.3★ (186) wp.org #22 3 too low 20

Masks Form Fields 9K+ · 5.0★ (23) thin reviews wp.org #16 ↑2 4 too high 21

Advanced Query Loop 6K+ · 4.6★ (30) wp.org #21 22

Contact Form to Any API 8K+ · 5.0★ (28) wp.org #24 2 too low 23

Piotnet Addons For Elementor 20K+ · 3.2★ (57) wp.org #17 ↑3 6 too high 24

MH Free Gifts for WooCommerce 600+ · 5.0★ (4) thin reviews wp.org #20 ↓1 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.