wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “export theme”

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 “export theme”, we and wp.org disagree on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 10 of the top 20. 2 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

Import / Export Customizer Settings shows at wp.org #6 but places #19 on merit, a gap of 13 places. Its 50K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 4.7★ average from 6 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

LiteSpeed Cache places #11 on merit, 4.8★ from 2778 reviews, but shows at wp.org #20. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin signals wp.org

Advanced Order Export For WooCommerce 100K+ · 5.0★ (350) wp.org #3 ↓1 2 too low 2

WP All Export – Drag & Drop Export to Any Custom CSV, XML & Excel 100K+ · 4.5★ (415) wp.org #4 ↓1 2 too low 3

Export Themes 2K+ · 4.9★ (13) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews wp.org #1 2 too high 4

Xpro Theme Builder For Elementor – FREE 20K+ · 5.0★ (14) thin reviews wp.org #2 ↑3 2 too high 5

Customizer Export/Import 100K+ · 4.8★ (115) wp.org #5 ↓1 6

Easy Updates Manager 300K+ · 4.8★ (726) wp.org #11 5 too low 7

Export media with selected content (by DKZR) 40K+ · 4.5★ (93) wp.org #8 1 too low 8

Export Media URLs 7K+ · 5.0★ (29) wp.org #7 1 too high 9

Wordfence Security – Firewall, Malware Scan, and Login Security 5M+ · 4.7★ (5039) heavy footprint wp.org #17 ↓4 8 too low 10

Create Block Theme 20K+ · 4.8★ (38) wp.org #10 ↑2 11

LiteSpeed Cache 7M+ · 4.8★ (2778) wp.org #20 ↓3 9 too low 12

WP All Export – Product Export Add-On for WooCommerce 10K+ · 4.5★ (24) thin reviews wp.org #9 3 too high 13

All-in-One WP Migration and Backup 5M+ · 4.5★ (7676) wp.org #23 ↓1 10 too low 14

WooCommerce 7M+ · 4.5★ (4833) throws errorsnot PHP-currentheavy footprint wp.org #14 ↓4 15

Child Theme Configurator 300K+ · 4.7★ (280) wp.org #21 ↓2 6 too low 16

Code Snippets 1M+ · 4.7★ (510) not PHP-current wp.org #16 17

Easy Google Maps by Supsystic – Custom Markers, Clustering & Map Themes 20K+ · 4.6★ (251) wp.org #24 7 too low 18

BrikPanel: WooCommerce Dashboard & Analytics, Abandoned Cart Recovery, Order Export, Inventory Management & Bulk Editor 1K+ · 5.0★ (55) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #12 6 too high 19

Import / Export Customizer Settings 50K+ · 4.7★ (6) thin reviews wp.org #6 13 too high 20

Import Export Menu 3K+ · 4.4★ (10) thin reviews wp.org #15 ↓1 5 too high 21

WP All Export – Order Export for WooCommerce 3K+ · 3.9★ (8) thin reviews wp.org #13 ↑2 8 too high 22

Post Export Import with Media 1K+ · 4.5★ (8) thin reviews wp.org #18 ↓2 4 too high 23

Simple Export to Markdown 300+ · 5.0★ (3) thin reviews wp.org #22 1 too high 24

Export Media as ZIP 3K+ · 3.7★ (3) thin reviews wp.org #19 ↓1 5 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.