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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “hide message”

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 message”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 11 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.

H

Ranked above its merit

Hide Plugins Update Message shows at wp.org #11 but places #24 on merit, a gap of 13 places. Its 60+ 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

WPForms – AI Form Builder for WordPress – Contact Forms, Payment Forms, Survey Form, Quiz & More places #10 on merit, 4.8★ from 14387 reviews, but shows at wp.org #21. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 WPS Hide Login 2M+ · 4.8★ (2111) wp.org #1 2 Hide My WP Ghost – Security & Firewall 100K+ · 4.5★ (373) wp.org #2 3 WP Hide & Security Enhancer 50K+ · 4.3★ (275) wp.org #3 4 Better Messages – Chat Rooms, Group Chat, Private Messages & AI Chat Bots 10K+ · 4.8★ (142) wp.org #5 1 too low 5 Disable Admin Notices – Hide Dashboard Notifications 100K+ · 4.7★ (367) wp.org #6 1 too low 6 Hide Posts 20K+ · 4.7★ (22) wp.org #4 2 too high 7 WP Mail SMTP by WPForms – SMTP for Reliable Email Delivery with Gmail, Outlook, Amazon SES, Brevo, Other SMTP & More 4M+ · 4.8★ (5209) wp.org #15 ↓1 8 too low 8 Auto Hide Admin Bar 3K+ · 4.8★ (32) wp.org #7 1 too high 9 Members – Membership & User Role Editor Plugin 300K+ · 4.9★ (1281) wp.org #18 9 too low 10 WPForms – AI Form Builder for WordPress – Contact Forms, Payment Forms, Survey Form, Quiz & More 5M+ · 4.8★ (14387) wp.org #21 ↓1 11 too low 11 Premium Addons for Elementor – AI-Ready Elementor Addons, Widgets & Templates 600K+ · 4.9★ (1680) wp.org #22 ↓3 11 too low 12 Hide Cart Functions 3K+ · 4.6★ (14) wp.org #9 3 too high 13 Click to Chat – HoliThemes 600K+ · 4.8★ (131) wp.org #20 ↓2 7 too low 14 Hide Drafts in Menus 1K+ · 5.0★ (9) wp.org #8 6 too high 15 Announcer – Sticky Message Banner & Notification Bar 10K+ · 4.8★ (40) wp.org #17 ↓1 2 too low 16 Sticky Chat Widget – Floating Chat Icons, Contact Form, Call, Click to Chat, Email & Message Buttons 10K+ · 5.0★ (39) wp.org #23 ↓2 7 too low 17 OrderConvo – Vendor & Customer Messages After Orders 200+ · 4.6★ (22) wp.org #24 ↓2 7 too low 18 Hide Price Until Login 1K+ · 3.5★ (24) wp.org #12 6 too high 19 Message Bridge for Contact Form 7 and Telegram 10K+ · 4.3★ (22) wp.org #19 ↓2 20 Message Popup For Contact Form 7 1K+ · 4.3★ (3) wp.org #10 10 too high 21 Hide Category by User Role for WooCommerce 300+ · 4.3★ (6) wp.org #14 ↓1 7 too high 22 My Wp Brand – Hide menu & Hide Plugin 2K+ · 4.0★ (4) wp.org #16 ↓1 6 too high 23 H Hide Update WP Message 40+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #13 ↓1 10 too high 24 H Hide Plugins Update Message 60+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #11 13 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.