Plugin Pulse Beta
← Rankings

wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “external link”

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 “external link”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 10 of the top 20. 6 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

External Links Overview shows at wp.org #13 but places #23 on merit, a gap of 10 places. Its 1K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 3 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

ThirstyAffiliates – Affiliate Links, Link Branding, Link Tracking & Marketing Plugin places #12 on merit, 4.6★ from 251 reviews, but shows at wp.org #22. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Broken Link Checker 500K+ · 3.8★ (605) wp.org #1 2 PrettyLinks – Affiliate Link Management, URL Shortener, Link Cloaking, Tracking & Branded Short Links 200K+ · 4.8★ (1322) wp.org #3 1 too low 3 External Links – nofollow, noopener & new window 90K+ · 4.3★ (247) wp.org #2 1 too high 4 Rank Math SEO – AI SEO Tools to Dominate SEO Rankings 4M+ · 4.8★ (7519) wp.org #8 ↓1 4 too low 5 External Links in New Window / New Tab 30K+ · 4.5★ (77) wp.org #5 6 P Page Links To 100K+ · 4.9★ (157) wp.org #9 3 too low 7 No External Links 4K+ · 4.8★ (16) wp.org #4 3 too high 8 Visual Link Preview 10K+ · 4.5★ (36) wp.org #7 ↑1 1 too high 9 Broken Link Checker by AIOSEO – Find & Fix Broken Internal, External & Video Links 200K+ · 3.8★ (87) wp.org #6 3 too high 10 Link Whisper Free 30K+ · 4.2★ (150) wp.org #12 ↑2 2 too low 11 Simple Link Directory – AI Powered 2K+ · 4.8★ (121) wp.org #17 ↑2 6 too low 12 ThirstyAffiliates – Affiliate Links, Link Branding, Link Tracking & Marketing Plugin 30K+ · 4.6★ (251) wp.org #22 ↑1 10 too low 13 External Product New Tab for WooCommerce 3K+ · 4.8★ (35) wp.org #14 ↑1 1 too low 14 BetterLinks – Link Shortener, Link Cloaking, Redirects, Affiliate Link Manager & MCP 20K+ · 4.8★ (85) wp.org #24 10 too low 15 EXMAGE – WordPress Image Links 5K+ · 5.0★ (33) wp.org #19 ↑1 4 too low 16 Broken Link Notifier 1K+ · 4.8★ (14) wp.org #21 ↑1 5 too low 17 E External Permalinks Redux 2K+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #10 ↑2 7 too high 18 Indicate External Links 600+ · 5.0★ (7) wp.org #16 2 too high 19 Improved External Products for WooCommerce 1K+ · 3.7★ (26) wp.org #18 ↑3 1 too high 20 Leaving Notice Popup For External Links – nofollow, noopener & New Tab 200+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #11 9 too high 21 Link Checker 4K+ · 3.2★ (30) wp.org #23 ↑1 2 too low 22 Pz-LinkCard 20K+ · 5.0★ (9) wp.org #20 ↓10 2 too high 23 External Links Overview 1K+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #13 10 too high 24 VK Link Target Controller 30K+ · 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.