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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “hits counter”

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 “hits counter”, we and wp.org disagree on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 16 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

Personal Hit Counter shows at wp.org #7 but places #24 on merit, a gap of 17 places. Its 30+ installs carry it up the search order; its 3.0★ average from 1 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Joinchat – Enhanced "click to chat" places #8 on merit, 4.7★ from 189 reviews, but shows at wp.org #22. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Visitor Traffic Real Time Statistics 30K+ · 4.2★ (232) wp.org #4 3 too low 2 SRS Simple Hits Counter 8K+ · 4.2★ (6) wp.org #1 1 too high 3 404 to 301 – Redirect Manager, 301 Redirection, 404 Error Logs & 404 Monitoring 100K+ · 4.7★ (315) wp.org #6 3 too low 4 Independent Analytics – WordPress Analytics Plugin 100K+ · 4.8★ (166) wp.org #9 5 too low 5 WP-PostViews 100K+ · 4.4★ (65) wp.org #8 3 too low 6 Security Plugin, Firewall & Malware Scanner with Auto Removal 40K+ · 4.8★ (391) wp.org #14 8 too low 7 Filter Everything — WordPress & WooCommerce Filters 50K+ · 4.6★ (149) wp.org #16 ↓1 9 too low 8 Joinchat – Enhanced "click to chat" 700K+ · 4.7★ (189) wp.org #22 14 too low 9 SEO Engine – Smart SEO with AI, Schema & Redirection for WordPress 1K+ · 4.9★ (47) wp.org #20 ↓4 11 too low 10 Trace My IP – Visitor IP Tracker, Stats Analytics & Page Views Counter with Email Alerts 1K+ · 4.5★ (21) wp.org #10 11 Counter-Hits 1K+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #2 9 too high 12 WPS Visitor Counter 10K+ · 3.9★ (8) wp.org #5 7 too high 13 WP-DownloadManager 3K+ · 4.0★ (37) wp.org #23 ↑1 10 too low 14 Page View Count 10K+ · 4.0★ (55) wp.org #21 7 too low 15 BotBlocker Security – Complete security platform 3K+ · 5.0★ (10) wp.org #15 ↑2 16 MWR Hit Counter 100+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #3 13 too high 17 Real-Time Post Statistics for WordPress 1K+ · 4.8★ (4) wp.org #13 4 too high 18 Yoast Test Helper 60K+ · 4.9★ (12) wp.org #24 ↓1 6 too low 19 LottieFiles 7K+ · 2.3★ (18) wp.org #19 ↑1 20 The Hits Counter 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #11 9 too high 21 Word Counter Plus 80+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #12 9 too high 22 Digi Eye Redirects 100+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #17 ↑2 5 too high 23 Advanced Redirect Manager 301 70+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #18 5 too high 24 Personal Hit Counter 30+ · 3.0★ (1) wp.org #7 17 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.