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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “feature cards”

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 “feature cards”, we and wp.org disagree on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 15 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

Cards for Beaver Builder shows at wp.org #5 but places #18 on merit, a gap of 13 places. Its 1K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 4.3★ average from 4 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

WPForms – AI Form Builder for WordPress – Contact Forms, Payment Forms, Survey Form, Quiz & More places #6 on merit, 4.8★ from 14387 reviews, but shows at wp.org #24. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Flip Cards Module For Divi 3K+ · 4.9★ (32) wp.org #3 ↑1 2 too low 2 Info Cards – Add Text and Media in Card Layouts 2K+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #1 1 too high 3 WooCommerce 7M+ · 4.5★ (4833) wp.org #9 ↓2 6 too low 4 Fluent Forms – Customizable Contact Forms, Survey, Quiz, & Conversational Form Builder 800K+ · 4.8★ (807) wp.org #17 ↓3 13 too low 5 Code Snippets 1M+ · 4.7★ (510) wp.org #11 6 too low 6 WPForms – AI Form Builder for WordPress – Contact Forms, Payment Forms, Survey Form, Quiz & More 5M+ · 4.8★ (14387) wp.org #24 ↓2 18 too low 7 Forminator Forms – Contact Form, Payment Form & Custom Form Builder 600K+ · 4.8★ (2143) wp.org #22 ↓3 15 too low 8 Payment Plugins for Stripe WooCommerce 100K+ · 4.8★ (303) wp.org #12 ↓1 4 too low 9 YITH WooCommerce Gift Cards 10K+ · 3.3★ (53) wp.org #4 ↑1 5 too high 10 Gift Up Gift Cards for WordPress and WooCommerce 5K+ · 4.9★ (235) wp.org #19 ↓2 9 too low 11 Recipe Card Blocks Lite 10K+ · 4.8★ (20) wp.org #10 1 too high 12 Payment Plugins for PayPal WooCommerce 80K+ · 4.8★ (127) wp.org #13 ↑8 1 too low 13 Cards Layout – showcase content in responsive card grids 500+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #2 11 too high 14 WooCommerce PayPal Payments 800K+ · 2.9★ (583) wp.org #7 ↑11 7 too high 15 Flexible PDF Coupons – Gift Cards & Vouchers for WooCommerce 2K+ · 4.7★ (31) wp.org #18 ↓2 3 too low 16 Oracle Cards Lite – Interactive Card Deck Plugin for WordPress 300+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #6 ↑2 10 too high 17 WebToffee Gift Cards for WooCommerce 1K+ · 4.5★ (10) wp.org #8 ↑1 9 too high 18 Cards for Beaver Builder 1K+ · 4.3★ (4) wp.org #5 ↑1 13 too high 19 WooCommerce Stripe Payment Gateway 700K+ · 3.1★ (237) wp.org #15 ↓3 4 too high 20 Card Elements for Elementor 3K+ · 5.0★ (10) wp.org #14 ↓1 6 too high 21 WooPayments: Integrated WooCommerce Payments 800K+ · 3.4★ (177) wp.org #20 1 too high 22 Rede Itaú for WooCommerce — Payment PIX, Credit Card and Debit 1K+ · 4.3★ (9) wp.org #23 1 too low 23 B Beltoft Gift Cards for WooCommerce 40+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #21 2 too high 24 Card Elements for WPBakery 500+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #16 ↓1 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.