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

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 “gmt”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 12 of the top 20. 1 plugin is 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 the install base is organic or host-pushed, and its risk of being pulled.

H

Ranked above its merit

Hebrew Dates shows at wp.org #14 but places #23 on merit, a gap of 9 places. Its 10+ installs carry it up the search order; its 3.5★ average from 2 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

XML Sitemap Generator for Google places #6 on merit, 4.8★ from 2233 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 WP Date and Time Shortcode 10K+ · 4.9★ (31) wp.org #1 2 ConveyThis AI Multilingual Translation 1K+ · 4.4★ (145) wp.org #3 1 too low 3 WOLF – WordPress Posts Bulk Editor and Manager Professional 4K+ · 4.7★ (27) wp.org #2 1 too high 4 Comments – GraphComment | AI-Moderated Comment System 400+ · 4.7★ (30) wp.org #5 1 too low 5 Riddle Quiz Maker – easily add quizzes with unlimited lead generation to your site 200+ · 4.6★ (9) wp.org #4 1 too high 6 XML Sitemap Generator for Google 1M+ · 4.8★ (2233) wp.org #24 18 too low 7 Bradmax Player 1K+ · 4.3★ (11) wp.org #6 1 too high 8 Simple Custom CSS and JS 600K+ · 4.4★ (104) wp.org #17 ↓1 9 too low 9 We’re Open! 5K+ · 5.0★ (45) wp.org #18 ↓1 9 too low 10 ModuloBox – NextGen Lightbox 200+ · 4.8★ (6) wp.org #8 2 too high 11 Wava Payment Plugin 100+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #7 4 too high 12 AI 60K+ · 4.2★ (10) wp.org #22 10 too low 13 Final POS – Drag & Drop Point of Sale Builder 10+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #9 4 too high 14 D Daily Picks CSV Export — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #10 4 too high 15 Event – Add to Calendar 50+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #11 4 too high 16 EU Withdrawal Button for WooCommerce – Octoplug 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #12 ↑8 4 too high 17 Cart To Checkout Timer — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #13 ↓1 4 too high 18 M Marketing Mystery Content Republisher — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #15 ↓1 3 too high 19 PSBDx Smart Report Management — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #16 ↓1 3 too high 20 Animated Message Scheduler for Elementor (Lite Extended) — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #20 ↓1 21 LUKDEV Custom Data Tables — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #21 22 Logify – Activity Log, Audit Log, Event Log & User Activity Tracking 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #23 ↓1 1 too low 23 H Hebrew Dates 10+ · 3.5★ (2) wp.org #14 ↓1 9 too high 24 BP Add Post Updates to Activity 20+ · 3.0★ (3) wp.org #19 ↓1 5 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.