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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “field type”

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 “field type”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 9 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

Advanced Custom Fields: Typography Field shows at wp.org #13 but places #24 on merit, a gap of 11 places. Its 3K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 4.6★ average from 5 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Checkout Field Manager (Checkout Manager) for WooCommerce places #11 on merit, 4.5★ from 784 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 Pods – Custom Content Types and Fields 100K+ · 4.8★ (418) wp.org #1 2 Advanced Custom Fields (ACF®) 2M+ · 4.5★ (1440) wp.org #2 ↑2 3 Checkout Field Editor (Checkout Manager) for WooCommerce 400K+ · 4.9★ (1056) wp.org #4 ↓1 1 too low 4 Custom Post Type UI 1M+ · 4.6★ (276) wp.org #3 ↓1 1 too high 5 Post Types Order 600K+ · 4.5★ (296) wp.org #5 6 Table Field Add-on for ACF and SCF 50K+ · 4.9★ (60) wp.org #6 7 Advanced Product Fields (Product Addons) for WooCommerce 50K+ · 4.8★ (284) wp.org #14 ↓1 7 too low 8 Meta Field Block – Display Custom Fields for ACF, Meta Box and More 10K+ · 5.0★ (57) wp.org #8 9 B BuddyPress Xprofile Custom Field Types 3K+ · 4.9★ (16) wp.org #7 2 too high 10 Flexible Checkout Fields for WooCommerce – WooCommerce Checkout Manager 80K+ · 4.7★ (296) wp.org #19 9 too low 11 Checkout Field Manager (Checkout Manager) for WooCommerce 80K+ · 4.5★ (784) wp.org #22 ↓2 11 too low 12 Secure Custom Fields 100K+ · 4.8★ (69) wp.org #12 13 Checkout Field Editor for WooCommerce – Checkout Manager 20K+ · 4.9★ (165) wp.org #20 ↓1 7 too low 14 Advanced Custom Fields: Extended 100K+ · 4.8★ (132) wp.org #21 ↓3 7 too low 15 Advanced Custom Fields: Font Awesome Field 90K+ · 4.9★ (36) wp.org #15 ↓1 16 MB Custom Post Types & Custom Taxonomies 10K+ · 4.7★ (13) wp.org #9 7 too high 17 Custom Field Template 30K+ · 4.0★ (24) wp.org #10 7 too high 18 Extra Product Options For WooCommerce | Custom Product Addons and Fields 30K+ · 4.9★ (219) wp.org #23 5 too low 19 Custom Post Types and Custom Fields creator – WCK 10K+ · 4.7★ (97) wp.org #18 ↑1 1 too high 20 Blocks for ACF Fields — Display Custom Fields in the Block Editor 2K+ · 4.9★ (13) wp.org #16 ↓1 4 too high 21 Post Type Transfer 2K+ · 5.0★ (7) wp.org #11 ↑10 10 too high 22 Telephone field for Elementor Forms 4K+ · 5.0★ (6) wp.org #17 ↓1 5 too high 23 Custom field finder 2K+ · 5.0★ (5) wp.org #24 1 too low 24 Advanced Custom Fields: Typography Field 3K+ · 4.6★ (5) wp.org #13 ↓1 11 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.