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

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 “expo”, we and wp.org disagree on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 9 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 the install base is organic or host-pushed, and its risk of being pulled.

Ranked above its merit

SimpleSocial shows at wp.org #15 but places #23 on merit, a gap of 8 places. Its 100+ installs carry it up the search order; its 3.0★ average from 2 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

merit plugin signals wp.org

WP Event Manager – Events Calendar, Registrations, Sell Tickets with WooCommerce 20K+ · 4.0★ (249) wp.org #2 1 too low 2

AnimateGL – WebGL & CSS Scroll Animations and Hover Effects for Gutenberg and Elementor 2K+ · 5.0★ (22) thin reviews wp.org #3 1 too low 3

Expo Booth Booking 10+ · 0.0★ (0) thin reviewslow rating, top placement wp.org #1 2 too high 4

FooSales – Point of Sale (POS) for WooCommerce 600+ · 3.2★ (13) thin reviewslow rating, top placement wp.org #4 ↓1 5

WPEM – REST API 200+ · 0.0★ (0) thin reviewslow rating, top placement wp.org #5 2 too high 8

EXA11Y – Expo Accessibility Kit — · 0.0★ (0) thin reviews wp.org #7 ↓2 1 too high 9

SwiftPost 10+ · 5.0★ (5) closure risk thin reviews wp.org #23 ↓2 14 too low 10

Wow Sliders Addons for Elementor 30+ · 5.0★ (1) thin reviews wp.org #6 ↓2 4 too high 11

Arts Smooth Scrolling for Elementor 60+ · 0.0★ (0) thin reviews wp.org #8 ↓2 3 too high 12

SwiftAd 10+ · 5.0★ (3) closure risk thin reviews wp.org #22 ↓2 10 too low 13

MultiStage Event Planner – Multi-Track Conference & Congress Schedule — · 0.0★ (0) thin reviews wp.org #11 ↓1 2 too high 14 C Champis.net — · 4.0★ (1) thin reviews wp.org #10 ↓2 4 too high 15

BrewmyApp — Mobile App Builder for WooCommerce — · 5.0★ (1) thin reviews wp.org #9 ↓2 6 too high 16

DIG Local SEO & AI Post Booster — · 0.0★ (0) thin reviews wp.org #12 ↓3 4 too high 17

Notificator – Alerts & Notifications — · 0.0★ (0) thin reviews wp.org #13 ↓2 4 too high 18

App26 Mobile App — · 0.0★ (0) thin reviews wp.org #16 ↓2 2 too high 19

RZN Studio Scroll Animations — · 0.0★ (0) thin reviews wp.org #17 ↓2 2 too high 20 C CartMan Connect for WooCommerce — · 0.0★ (0) thin reviews wp.org #18 ↓2 2 too high 21

Schemafy — · 0.0★ (0) thin reviews wp.org #20 ↓2 1 too high 22

Fusion Web App 10+ · 0.0★ (0) closure risk thin reviews wp.org #19 ↓2 3 too high 23

SimpleSocial 100+ · 3.0★ (2) thin reviews wp.org #15 ↓2 8 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.