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← Rankings

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

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 “gpc”, we and wp.org disagree on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 12 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

Quantely Activity shows at wp.org #15 but places #23 on merit, a gap of 8 places. Its 10+ 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

Seers AI | Cookie Consent Banner – GDPR & CCPA Compliant Consent Management Platform places #5 on merit, 4.7★ from 52 reviews, but shows at wp.org #9. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 CookieYes – Cookie Banner for Cookie Consent (Easy to setup GDPR/CCPA Compliant Cookie Notice) 1M+ · 4.8★ (3236) wp.org #2 ↑1 1 too low 2 Cookie Compliance for WordPress – Cookie Consent, GDPR & CCPA 800K+ · 4.8★ (3026) wp.org #3 ↓1 1 too low 3 WPConsent – Cookie Banner & Cookie Consent for Privacy Compliance (GDPR / CCPA / EU Compliance Cookie Notice) 200K+ · 4.8★ (84) wp.org #4 1 too low 4 CookieAdmin – Cookie Consent Banner 400K+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #1 3 too high 5 Seers AI | Cookie Consent Banner – GDPR & CCPA Compliant Consent Management Platform 1K+ · 4.7★ (52) wp.org #9 ↑1 4 too low 6 Cookiez – GDPR & CCPA Cookie Banner & Consent Manager 50K+ · 4.3★ (4) wp.org #5 1 too high 7 Concord – Cookie Banner & Full Privacy Platform for Cookie Consent & GDPR/CCPA Compliance 100+ · 5.0★ (6) wp.org #11 ↑2 4 too low 8 Essential Classy Addons for Elementor – 150+ Widgets, Templates & Performance Tools 400+ · 5.0★ (8) wp.org #14 ↑1 6 too low 9 Lynbro Cookie Consent 100+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #13 ↑1 4 too low 10 Well-Known File Manager 200+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #12 2 too low 11 RSS Control 300+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #6 ↑3 5 too high 12 ConsentOwl — Cookie Consent & Tracker Blocker 300+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #7 5 too high 13 Consentinel Cookie Consent 10+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #10 ↑1 3 too high 14 AdSimple Cookie Consent Banner 700+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #8 6 too high 15 PN Cookies Manager 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #17 2 too low 16 Statnive – Privacy-first Analytics + Revenue Reports for WooCommerce 30+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #19 ↓1 3 too low 17 CQI Referrer Attribution 20+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #20 3 too low 18 CookieFlame — · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #16 2 too high 19 Global Consent Gate – Cookies and Tracking — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #23 ↓2 4 too low 20 GoConsent™ – Cookie Consent Banner & Privacy Tools — · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #18 2 too high 21 PMS Cookie Banner Lite — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #24 ↓1 3 too low 22 Honest Analytics — · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #22 23 Quantely Activity 10+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #15 ↑1 8 too high 24 TrustArc Cookie Consent Manager 30+ · 1.0★ (1) wp.org #21 ↓2 3 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.