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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “guest authors”

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 “guest authors”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 10 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

Authorsy – Author Box, Multiple Authors, Guest Authors & Post Rating shows at wp.org #9 but places #22 on merit, a gap of 13 places. Its 1K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 0.0★ average from 0 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Custom Sidebars – Dynamic Sidebar Classic Widget Area Manager places #7 on merit, 4.7★ from 1028 reviews, but shows at wp.org #17. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Co-Authors, Multiple Authors and Guest Authors in an Author Box with PublishPress Authors 20K+ · 4.9★ (114) wp.org #1 2 Molongui Authorship – Author Boxes, Guest Authors & Co-Authors for WordPress 10K+ · 4.7★ (158) wp.org #2 3 WP Post Author – Author Box, Multiple Authors, Guest Authors & Custom Avatars 10K+ · 4.2★ (22) wp.org #4 1 too low 4 Co-Authors Plus 20K+ · 3.5★ (77) wp.org #5 1 too low 5 Guest Author 5K+ · 4.2★ (13) wp.org #3 2 too high 6 GTM4WP – A Google Tag Manager (GTM) plugin for WordPress 700K+ · 4.5★ (155) wp.org #8 2 too low 7 Custom Sidebars – Dynamic Sidebar Classic Widget Area Manager 100K+ · 4.7★ (1028) wp.org #17 ↓2 10 too low 8 Simple Author Box 90K+ · 4.3★ (114) wp.org #6 2 too high 9 Schedule Post Changes With PublishPress Future: Unpublish, Delete, Change Status, Trash, Change Categories 100K+ · 4.5★ (172) wp.org #12 3 too low 10 Better Messages – Chat Rooms, Group Chat, Private Messages & AI Chat Bots 10K+ · 4.8★ (142) wp.org #15 ↑1 5 too low 11 ( (Simply) Guest Author Name 2K+ · 4.7★ (23) wp.org #7 4 too high 12 PublishPress Capabilities: User Role Access Control, Admin Area Permissions 100K+ · 4.7★ (143) wp.org #14 2 too low 13 Comments – wpDiscuz 60K+ · 4.7★ (580) wp.org #16 ↑6 3 too low 14 PublishPress Revisions: Duplicate Posts, Submit, Approve and Schedule Content Changes 10K+ · 4.6★ (64) wp.org #18 ↓1 4 too low 15 Gwolle Guestbook 20K+ · 4.8★ (113) wp.org #22 ↓1 7 too low 16 PublishPress Planner – Editorial Calendar, Marketing Content, Kanban Board 6K+ · 4.9★ (178) wp.org #24 ↓6 8 too low 17 Author Box WP Lens 900+ · 5.0★ (12) wp.org #10 7 too high 18 PublishPress Permissions: Access Control, Content Permissions, User Access 10K+ · 4.3★ (66) wp.org #23 5 too low 19 Issues and Series for Newspapers, Magazines, Publishers, Writers 2K+ · 4.5★ (72) wp.org #20 1 too low 20 Easy Post Submission – Frontend Posting, Guest Publishing & Submit Content for WordPress 4K+ · 4.5★ (6) wp.org #13 7 too high 21 Wedding Party RSVP – Guest List, Invitation & Event Manager 100+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #19 2 too high 22 Authorsy – Author Box, Multiple Authors, Guest Authors & Post Rating 1K+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #9 13 too high 23 ThemeRuby Multi Authors – Assign Multiple Writers to Posts 2K+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #11 12 too high 24 Custom Guest Authors 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #21 ↓1 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.