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

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 “gforms”, we and wp.org disagree on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 11 of the top 20. 4 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

Gravity Forms Export Entries shows at wp.org #8 but places #18 on merit, a gap of 10 places. Its 200+ installs carry it up the search order; its 3.0★ average from 3 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Firelight Lightbox places #1 on merit, 4.8★ from 361 reviews, but shows at wp.org #7. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Firelight Lightbox 200K+ · 4.8★ (361) wp.org #7 6 too low 2 Country and State Selection Addon for Gravity Forms 900+ · 4.0★ (4) wp.org #1 1 too high 3 Multi Page Auto Advance for Gravity Forms 2K+ · 4.3★ (20) wp.org #11 ↓1 8 too low 4 I Iran Phone Format For GForms 20+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #2 2 too high 5 Restrict Dates Add-On for Gravity Forms 500+ · 5.0★ (5) wp.org #9 ↓1 4 too low 6 G GF Stripe Extensions 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #3 3 too high 7 HIPAA Forms 800+ · 4.3★ (9) wp.org #15 ↓1 8 too low 8 G GF Limit Payments — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #4 4 too high 9 Enable Turnstile (Cloudflare) for Gravity Forms 1K+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #10 ↓1 1 too low 10 U Unique List For Gravity Forms — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #5 5 too high 11 Import Excel to Gravity Forms 100+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #6 5 too high 12 Repeater Fields for Gravity Forms 1K+ · 3.4★ (5) wp.org #13 ↓2 1 too low 13 F Forms List Description for Gravity Forms — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #12 1 too high 14 Survey Reporting & Data Analysis Report Add-On for Gravity Forms — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #14 ↓1 15 Resonanz User Role Permissions for Gravity Forms — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #18 ↓1 3 too low 16 SV Gravity Forms Enhancer 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #17 ↓1 1 too low 17 PHP Code Keeper for Gravity Forms 20+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #19 ↓1 2 too low 18 Gravity Forms Export Entries 200+ · 3.0★ (3) wp.org #8 ↓1 10 too high 19 W Webhook Signature add-on for Gravity Forms — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #21 ↓1 2 too low 20 FB GoCardless Hosted for Gravity Forms 10+ · 4.0★ (1) wp.org #20 ↓1 21 E Events Calendar GForms Registration 20+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #22 ↓1 1 too low 22 S Shortcodes for Gravity Forms 50+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #24 ↓1 2 too low 23 SWE Country Code Field GF Add-On 300+ · 3.5★ (2) wp.org #16 ↓1 7 too high 24 Admin Bar Edit Links for Gravity Forms 10+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #23 ↓1 1 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.