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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “face shape”

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 “face shape”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 8 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

AI Face Shape Detector Widget shows at wp.org #2 but places #9 on merit, a gap of 7 places. Its — installs carry it up the search order; its 0.0★ average from 0 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Jetpack – AI Agents & MCP, Security, Backup & Analytics places #7 on merit, 3.7★ from 2408 reviews, but shows at wp.org #23. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Variation Swatches for WooCommerce – Color, Image & Size Swatches 200K+ · 4.6★ (51) wp.org #1 2 Advanced Woo Labels – Product Labels & Badges for WooCommerce 10K+ · 5.0★ (64) wp.org #3 1 too low 3 Social Login, Social Sharing by miniOrange 10K+ · 4.6★ (356) wp.org #4 1 too low 4 Slider Hero with Video Background, Animation 3K+ · 4.8★ (34) wp.org #6 2 too low 5 Master Addons for Elementor – Elementor Addons, Widgets, Mega Menu Builder, Popup Builder, Widget Builder & Template Kits 30K+ · 4.5★ (212) wp.org #13 8 too low 6 Xpro Addons — 150+ Widgets for Elementor 40K+ · 4.4★ (28) wp.org #7 ↑1 1 too low 7 Jetpack – AI Agents & MCP, Security, Backup & Analytics 3M+ · 3.7★ (2408) wp.org #23 16 too low 8 miniOrange Discord Integration 100+ · 3.5★ (8) wp.org #5 3 too high 9 AI Face Shape Detector Widget — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #2 7 too high 10 Advanced User Avatar | Custom Profile Picture Uploader for WordPress, WooCommerce, and BuddyPress 300+ · 5.0★ (6) wp.org #10 ↑4 11 Pie Forms — Drag & Drop Form Builder 100+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #8 ↓1 3 too high 12 Scry Search: Meilisearch for WordPress 40+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #14 ↑1 2 too low 13 PressPrimer Certificate – Certificate Designer & Course Certification for Your LMS 300+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #12 ↓1 1 too high 14 Rapls Passkey – Passwordless Login with WebAuthn 40+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #15 ↑1 1 too low 15 Xpro Slider For Beaver Builder – Lite 400+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #9 6 too high 16 PixMapr Lite – Interactive Image Hotspots 60+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #17 ↑3 1 too low 17 CubeLaunch 20+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #19 2 too low 18 Neon Channel Product Customizer Free 40+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #11 ↑1 7 too high 19 E Emojify Studio – Custom Emoji & Sticker Builder — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #21 2 too low 20 Print.App 60+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #22 2 too low 21 U User Avatar Generator 10+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #18 3 too high 22 King Addons for Elementor – 100+ Elementor Widgets, 4 000+ Elementor Templates, WooCommerce Builder, Mega Menu, Popup Builder 10K+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #20 ↓10 2 too high 23 Gallery for Google Photos – share your albums right on your site 1K+ · 2.7★ (6) wp.org #16 ↑1 7 too high 24 Style Manager 500+ · 1.0★ (1) wp.org #24 ↓1

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.