wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “hide”
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 “hide”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 9 of the top 20. 2 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
Hide WP Admin Notifications shows at wp.org #15 but places #22 on merit, a gap of 7 places. Its 3K+ 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
Disable Admin Notices – Hide Dashboard Notifications places #5 on merit, 4.7★ from 367 reviews, but shows at wp.org #11. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.
WPS Hide Login 2M+ · 4.8★ (2111)
wp.org #1 2 
Hide My WP Ghost – Security & Firewall 100K+ · 4.5★ (373)
wp.org #2 ↑1 3 
WP Hide & Security Enhancer 50K+ · 4.3★ (275) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #3 ↓1 4 
Easy Hide Login 20K+ · 4.4★ (43)
wp.org #4 ↑2 5 Disable Admin Notices – Hide Dashboard Notifications 100K+ · 4.7★ (367)
wp.org #11 6 too low 6 
Hide Posts 20K+ · 4.7★ (22) thin reviews
wp.org #5 ↓1 1 too high 7 
Hide Page And Post Title 40K+ · 3.6★ (54)
wp.org #6 ↓1 1 too high 8 
WC Hide Shipping Methods 20K+ · 4.2★ (44)
wp.org #10 2 too low 9 
LWS Hide Login 20K+ · 4.7★ (12) thin reviews
wp.org #8 ↓1 1 too high 10 
Hide Shipping Method For WooCommerce 20K+ · 4.0★ (25) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #7 ↑2 3 too high 11 
Auto Hide Admin Bar 3K+ · 4.8★ (32)
wp.org #17 6 too low 12 
MM Title Manager — Hide Page and Post Titles 10K+ · 4.4★ (17) thin reviews
wp.org #12 13 
Hide/Remove Metadata 20K+ · 3.6★ (14) thin reviews
wp.org #9 ↓1 4 too high 14 
Hide Admin Bar from Non-Admins 10K+ · 4.3★ (30)
wp.org #18 4 too low 15 
Hide Tooltips on Hover – Clean Up Title Attributes Without Losing Accessibility 4K+ · 5.0★ (10) thin reviews
wp.org #16 1 too low 16 
Hide Dashboard Notifications 20K+ · 3.9★ (33)
wp.org #24 ↓2 8 too low 17 
Hide Cart Functions 3K+ · 4.6★ (14) thin reviews
wp.org #21 4 too low 18 
Hide Categories and Products for Woocommerce 10K+ · 4.1★ (29) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #14 4 too high 19 
WP Hide Post — Hide Posts, Pages, Custom Post Types, and Control Products Visibility for WooCommerce 3K+ · 5.0★ (5) thin reviews
wp.org #13 6 too high 20 
Hide Drafts in Menus 1K+ · 5.0★ (9) thin reviews
wp.org #20 21 
Hide Admin Bar Based on User Roles – Disable the WordPress Toolbar by Role or Capability 20K+ · 3.9★ (20) thin reviews
wp.org #23 2 too low 22 Hide WP Admin Notifications 3K+ · 5.0★ (1) thin reviews
wp.org #15 7 too high 23 
Hide Archive Label 900+ · 5.0★ (1) thin reviews
wp.org #19 4 too high 24 
Hide Author Archive 600+ · 5.0★ (1) thin reviews
wp.org #22 2 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.