wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “hebrew”
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 “hebrew”, we and wp.org disagree on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 8 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 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
mPDF add-on for RTL and Unicode Support shows at wp.org #11 but places #20 on merit, a gap of 9 places. Its 4K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 16 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
Buried gem
Folders – Unlimited Folders to Organize Media Library Folder, Pages, Posts, File Manager places #9 on merit, 5.0★ from 1525 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.
Widgets for Google Reviews 1M+ · 4.9★ (2667)
wp.org #2 1 too low 2 
WP Hebrew Date 600+ · 5.0★ (9) thin reviews
wp.org #1 1 too high 3 
Cyr-To-Lat 300K+ · 4.7★ (98)
wp.org #3 4 
Advanced Ads – Ad Manager & AdSense 90K+ · 4.9★ (1463) not PHP-current
wp.org #5 1 too low 5 
FileBird – WordPress Media Library Folders & File Manager 200K+ · 4.7★ (1125)
wp.org #6 ↑3 1 too low 6 
Table Field Add-on for ACF and SCF 50K+ · 4.9★ (60)
wp.org #4 2 too high 7 
Menu Cart for WooCommerce 70K+ · 4.6★ (99)
wp.org #8 ↓4 1 too low 8 
File Manager Pro – Filester 100K+ · 4.9★ (155)
wp.org #10 ↑4 2 too low 9 Folders – Unlimited Folders to Organize Media Library Folder, Pages, Posts, File Manager 90K+ · 5.0★ (1525)
wp.org #17 8 too low 10 
The SEO Framework – Fast, Automated, Effortless. 200K+ · 4.9★ (380) not PHP-current
wp.org #12 2 too low 11 
WP Go Maps – Google Map, OpenStreetMap, Leaflet Map 300K+ · 4.8★ (3055) not PHP-current
wp.org #19 ↓13 8 too low 12 
WP Accessibility Helper (WAH) 10K+ · 4.7★ (57)
wp.org #13 ↓5 1 too low 13 
WP YouTube Lyte 20K+ · 4.8★ (206)
wp.org #20 ↓5 7 too low 14 
Simple Membership 40K+ · 4.6★ (475) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #14 15 
Better Plugin Compatibility Control 4K+ · 4.3★ (19) thin reviews
wp.org #7 ↓2 8 too high 16 
Lenix Leads Collector 10K+ · 4.4★ (25)
wp.org #9 7 too high 17 
Show Pages IDs 10K+ · 5.0★ (103)
wp.org #24 ↓6 7 too low 18 
Donations via PayPal 20K+ · 4.7★ (27)
wp.org #16 ↓4 2 too high 19 
Advanced Shipment Tracking for WooCommerce 70K+ · 4.5★ (355) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #23 ↓13 4 too low 20 mPDF add-on for RTL and Unicode Support 4K+ · 5.0★ (16) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews
wp.org #11 ↓4 9 too high 21 
WP Menu Cart 8K+ · 4.8★ (23) thin reviews
wp.org #18 ↓5 3 too high 22 
WP Approve User 3K+ · 4.2★ (42)
wp.org #22 ↓1 23 
Fluent PDF Generator 20K+ · 5.0★ (6) thin reviews
wp.org #15 ↓4 8 too high 24 
Real3D Flipbook – 3D Flipbook, PDF Flipbook, PDF Viewer, PDF Embedder 10K+ · 4.5★ (11) thin reviews
wp.org #21 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.