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← Rankings

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

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 “gist”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 7 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.

O

Ranked above its merit

oEmbed Gists and Files shows at wp.org #3 but places #19 on merit, a gap of 16 places. Its 30+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 1 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

AMP for WP – Accelerated Mobile Pages places #7 on merit, 4.4★ from 1319 reviews, but shows at wp.org #14. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 WPCode – Insert Headers and Footers + Custom Code Snippets – WordPress Code Manager 3M+ · 4.9★ (1915) wp.org #1 2 AddQuicktag 100K+ · 4.7★ (44) wp.org #2 3 R Really Simple CSV Importer 40K+ · 4.9★ (107) wp.org #4 ↓1 1 too low 4 Force Regenerate Thumbnails 200K+ · 4.7★ (186) wp.org #5 1 too low 5 Fluent Forms – Customizable Contact Forms, Survey, Quiz, & Conversational Form Builder 800K+ · 4.8★ (807) wp.org #6 1 too low 6 EmbedPress 100K+ · 4.8★ (307) wp.org #7 ↑6 1 too low 7 AMP for WP – Accelerated Mobile Pages 70K+ · 4.4★ (1319) wp.org #14 ↓2 7 too low 8 Noptin – Newsletter, New Post Notifications & Email Automation 10K+ · 4.5★ (120) wp.org #8 ↓1 9 Subscribe Forms – Beautiful Email Forms, Embedded Newsletter Forms & MailChimp Form 2K+ · 4.7★ (60) wp.org #11 ↓1 2 too low 10 WP Fusion Lite – Marketing Automation and CRM Integration for WordPress 4K+ · 5.0★ (69) wp.org #13 ↓2 3 too low 11 Page Builder Gutenberg Blocks – CoBlocks 300K+ · 4.2★ (109) wp.org #10 ↓1 1 too high 12 Advanced Form Integration — Connect Forms to 300+ Apps 9K+ · 4.8★ (91) wp.org #17 5 too low 13 Block Animations, Motion & Scroll Effects – Ghost Kit 6K+ · 4.6★ (46) wp.org #12 ↑2 1 too high 14 MailOptin – Popup, Optin Forms & Email Newsletters for Mailchimp, HubSpot, AWeber Etc. 10K+ · 4.8★ (438) wp.org #18 4 too low 15 G Github Embed 1K+ · 3.9★ (14) wp.org #9 ↓1 6 too high 16 Pastacode 400+ · 4.9★ (14) wp.org #15 1 too high 17 Formality 100+ · 5.0★ (10) wp.org #22 5 too low 18 IUGU for WooCommerce 300+ · 4.3★ (11) wp.org #19 1 too low 19 O oEmbed Gists and Files 30+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #3 ↑1 16 too high 20 WPO365 | SAMESITE 200+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #24 4 too low 21 TurboPress Embed 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #20 1 too high 22 Code Block – share beautiful code snippets readers can copy 200+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #23 1 too low 23 iG:Syntax Hiliter 30+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #21 2 too high 24 Display Event Location for The Events Calendar 90+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #16 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.