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← Rankings

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

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 “favourite”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 10 of the top 20. 3 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

Flexible Wishlist for WooCommerce – Ecommerce Wishlist & Save for later shows at wp.org #15 but places #23 on merit, a gap of 8 places. Its 700+ installs carry it up the search order; its 4.4★ average from 5 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Query Monitor places #4 on merit, 4.9★ from 470 reviews, but shows at wp.org #9. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Events Manager – Calendar, Bookings, Tickets, Appointments and more! 60K+ · 4.2★ (551) wp.org #1 2 Fluent Forms – Customizable Contact Forms, Survey, Quiz, & Conversational Form Builder 800K+ · 4.8★ (807) wp.org #3 ↓1 1 too low 3 WP Recipe Maker 50K+ · 5.0★ (356) wp.org #5 ↓2 2 too low 4 Query Monitor 200K+ · 4.9★ (470) wp.org #9 ↓4 5 too low 5 Definitely allow mobile zooming 7K+ · 5.0★ (54) wp.org #6 1 too low 6 WP Super Cache 1M+ · 4.3★ (1346) wp.org #8 ↑3 2 too low 7 Thrive Automator 10K+ · 5.0★ (5) wp.org #2 ↑20 5 too high 8 YITH WooCommerce Wishlist 400K+ · 3.9★ (262) wp.org #4 4 too high 9 Imagify Image Optimization: Optimize Images | Compress & Convert to WebP/AVIF 900K+ · 4.3★ (1656) wp.org #12 ↓3 3 too low 10 Advanced Classifieds & Directory Pro 2K+ · 4.7★ (96) wp.org #10 ↓2 11 Advanced Views – Display Framework – Gutenberg/Elementor/Shortcode 3K+ · 4.8★ (36) wp.org #11 ↑4 12 NinjaScanner – Virus & Malware scan 40K+ · 4.0★ (36) wp.org #14 2 too low 13 Simple Woocommerce Favourites 100+ · 4.6★ (7) wp.org #7 6 too high 14 Salon Booking System – Appointment Booking for Salons, Barbershops & Spas 2K+ · 4.4★ (187) wp.org #22 ↓1 8 too low 15 CCI Posts Carousel All In One 2K+ · 4.6★ (27) wp.org #23 8 too low 16 Lead Form Data Collection to CRM 400+ · 4.0★ (46) wp.org #16 17 NM Gift Registry and Wishlist Lite 200+ · 4.9★ (25) wp.org #20 ↓1 3 too low 18 Ibtana – WordPress Website Builder 10K+ · 4.3★ (30) wp.org #24 6 too low 19 B bbp buddypress profile information 70+ · 5.0★ (5) wp.org #18 1 too high 20 Enable Mastodon Apps 500+ · 4.0★ (6) wp.org #13 ↓1 7 too high 21 B bbp profile information 100+ · 4.2★ (5) wp.org #17 4 too high 22 Export Variable Products 400+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #19 3 too high 23 Flexible Wishlist for WooCommerce – Ecommerce Wishlist & Save for later 700+ · 4.4★ (5) wp.org #15 ↓2 8 too high 24 Buckaroo Payments for WooCommerce 2K+ · 4.7★ (6) wp.org #21 ↓1 3 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.