Plugin Pulse Beta
← Rankings

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

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 “href”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 10 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

Hreflang Customizer shows at wp.org #8 but places #20 on merit, a gap of 12 places. Its 50+ 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

Mongoose Page Plugin places #9 on merit, 4.6★ from 64 reviews, but shows at wp.org #14. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Meta Field Block – Display Custom Fields for ACF, Meta Box and More 10K+ · 5.0★ (57) wp.org #1 ↑1 2 Joinchat – Enhanced “click to chat” 700K+ · 4.7★ (189) wp.org #2 ↓1 3 External Links – nofollow, noopener & new window 90K+ · 4.3★ (247) wp.org #3 4 Email Encoder – Protect Email Addresses and Phone Numbers 90K+ · 4.9★ (94) wp.org #5 1 too low 5 External Links in New Window / New Tab 30K+ · 4.5★ (77) wp.org #6 1 too low 6 Genesis Simple Hooks 20K+ · 4.6★ (22) wp.org #4 2 too high 7 Page scroll to id 100K+ · 4.9★ (225) wp.org #7 8 Click to Chat – HoliThemes 600K+ · 4.8★ (131) wp.org #12 4 too low 9 Mongoose Page Plugin 10K+ · 4.6★ (64) wp.org #14 ↓1 5 too low 10 Hyperlink Group Block 7K+ · 4.3★ (14) wp.org #9 ↓1 1 too high 11 Tangible: Loops & Logic 2K+ · 4.9★ (39) wp.org #17 ↓1 6 too low 12 Comment Reply Email Notification 3K+ · 4.8★ (33) wp.org #18 ↓1 6 too low 13 Smoothscroller 400+ · 4.9★ (7) wp.org #11 2 too high 14 WP Video Popup – WordPress Video Lightbox for YouTube, Rumble & Vimeo 9K+ · 4.1★ (43) wp.org #21 7 too low 15 Snippet Shortcodes 3K+ · 4.7★ (25) wp.org #22 7 too low 16 Pixeline’s Email Protector 900+ · 4.3★ (8) wp.org #13 ↑7 3 too high 17 Rover IDX 200+ · 4.8★ (24) wp.org #23 ↑1 6 too low 18 Email Address Obfuscation 2K+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #10 ↓1 8 too high 19 Multicons 2K+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #15 ↓1 4 too high 20 Hreflang Customizer 50+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #8 ↑2 12 too high 21 WP Anchor Header 300+ · 4.3★ (6) wp.org #19 ↓1 2 too high 22 B Basic URL ShortCodes 4K+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #16 ↓1 6 too high 23 F4 Simple White Label 200+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #20 ↓1 3 too high 24 REST API blocks 200+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #24 ↓1

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.