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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “fraud blocker”

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 “fraud blocker”, we and wp.org disagree on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 15 of the top 20. 5 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

Anti Fake Orders & IP Blocker shows at wp.org #8 but places #24 on merit, a gap of 16 places. Its 300+ installs carry it up the search order; its 1.0★ average from 2 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Ad Inserter – Ad Manager & AdSense Ads places #2 on merit, 4.9★ from 2433 reviews, but shows at wp.org #6. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Advanced Ads – Ad Manager & AdSense 90K+ · 4.9★ (1463) wp.org #2 1 too low 2 Ad Inserter – Ad Manager & AdSense Ads 300K+ · 4.9★ (2433) wp.org #6 ↑1 4 too low 3 Quads Ads Manager for Google AdSense 20K+ · 4.9★ (1087) wp.org #4 1 too low 4 Fraud Prevention For WooCommerce and EDD 4K+ · 3.7★ (23) wp.org #1 3 too high 5 Ads.txt Manager 100K+ · 4.7★ (15) wp.org #3 2 too high 6 Product Attachment for WooCommerce 6K+ · 4.5★ (24) wp.org #9 3 too low 7 Shipping Method Display Style for WooCommerce 2K+ · 4.6★ (21) wp.org #11 4 too low 8 Email and Domain Blocker for WooCommerce 300+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #5 3 too high 9 Mass Pages/Posts Creator 1K+ · 4.2★ (17) wp.org #12 ↑9 3 too low 10 Digital Goods for WooCommerce Checkout 3K+ · 4.5★ (42) wp.org #21 ↓1 11 too low 11 Hide Shipping Method For WooCommerce 20K+ · 4.0★ (25) wp.org #15 ↓3 4 too low 12 Banner Management For WooCommerce 2K+ · 4.5★ (26) wp.org #19 ↓1 7 too low 13 Extra Fees for WooCommerce 7K+ · 4.3★ (42) wp.org #22 9 too low 14 Product Size Charts Plugin for WooCommerce 9K+ · 4.3★ (39) wp.org #23 9 too low 15 Enhanced Ecommerce Google Analytics for WooCommerce 1K+ · 5.0★ (6) wp.org #17 ↓1 2 too low 16 Advanced Menu Manager Pro – Built for Content-heavy WordPress Sites to Add, Filter, Lock, and Edit Menus Easily 400+ · 3.7★ (22) wp.org #24 ↓1 8 too low 17 Minimum and Maximum Quantity for WooCommerce 3K+ · 4.0★ (16) wp.org #20 ↓1 3 too low 18 Linked Variations for WooCommerce – Link Separate Products by Attribute with Swatches, Quick View & Shortcodes 500+ · 4.2★ (5) wp.org #18 ↓1 19 Fraud Blocker — Click Fraud Protection 20+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #7 ↓1 12 too high 20 Bangladeshi Payments Mobile – MFS Gateway, QR Code, Advance COD Protection, Thermal POS Invoicing & WhatsApp Suite 1K+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #13 ↑1 7 too high 21 Conditional Payment Methods for WooCommerce 1K+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #16 ↓1 5 too high 22 Smart Cash on Delivery Fraud Blocker & OTP Verification for WooCommerce — · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #14 ↓1 8 too high 23 CheckoutGuard 70+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #10 13 too high 24 Anti Fake Orders & IP Blocker 300+ · 1.0★ (2) wp.org #8 16 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.