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

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 “hex”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 12 of the top 20. 4 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

Shortcode for Font Awesome shows at wp.org #7 but places #15 on merit, a gap of 8 places. Its 700+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 2 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Slideshow Gallery LITE places #7 on merit, 4.6★ from 743 reviews, but shows at wp.org #19. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Variation Swatches for WooCommerce 300K+ · 4.8★ (926) wp.org #1 ↑1 2 AnWP Post Grid and Post Carousel Slider for Elementor 20K+ · 4.9★ (84) wp.org #3 1 too low 3 Lightweight Accordion 10K+ · 5.0★ (60) wp.org #4 ↓1 1 too low 4 Insert Special Characters 3K+ · 4.9★ (8) wp.org #2 ↓1 2 too high 5 Product Addons for Woocommerce – Product Options with Custom Fields 30K+ · 4.9★ (474) wp.org #10 ↓2 5 too low 6 Variation Swatches for WooCommerce – Color, Image & Size Swatches 200K+ · 4.6★ (51) wp.org #5 ↓1 1 too high 7 Slideshow Gallery LITE 5K+ · 4.6★ (743) wp.org #19 ↓1 12 too low 8 Currency Converter Widget 2K+ · 4.9★ (88) wp.org #11 3 too low 9 Options for Twenty Nineteen 700+ · 5.0★ (10) wp.org #8 ↓1 1 too high 10 Options for Twenty Twenty 3K+ · 4.7★ (31) wp.org #13 3 too low 11 PPOM – Product Addons & Custom Fields for WooCommerce 20K+ · 4.5★ (283) wp.org #20 ↑2 9 too low 12 Stock Market Ticker 2K+ · 3.7★ (15) wp.org #6 ↓1 6 too high 13 AdOpt | Easy Multi-Regulations Cookie Banner. 7K+ · 4.0★ (8) wp.org #9 4 too high 14 Smart Variation Swatches for WooCommerce – Color & Image Attribute Swatches 3K+ · 3.2★ (13) wp.org #14 15 Shortcode for Font Awesome 700+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #7 ↓1 8 too high 16 Cryptocurrency Price Widget 200+ · 4.4★ (7) wp.org #24 ↓3 8 too low 17 StreamCast – bring live radio to your site with a sleek player 1K+ · 4.9★ (7) wp.org #22 ↓3 5 too low 18 Scoremer: Football Livescore, Tables and Fixtures 80+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #12 ↓2 6 too high 19 exovia YouTube DSGVO 100+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #17 ↓1 2 too high 20 WP Dropzone 80+ · 4.3★ (4) wp.org #23 ↓3 3 too low 21 Auto Refresh Post & Page 80+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #16 ↓1 5 too high 22 I InstaMigrate 1K+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #15 ↓3 7 too high 23 EffortLess QR Code Generator 30+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #21 2 too high 24 Web Accessibility Toolkit – Accessibility Checker & ARIA for WCAG, Section 508 & ADA Compliance 500+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #18 ↓1 6 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.