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

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 “html”, 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.

D

Ranked above its merit

Display HTML Sitemap shows at wp.org #12 but places #19 on merit, a gap of 7 places. Its 1K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 4.0★ average from 4 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

TablePress – Tables in WordPress made easy places #7 on merit, 5.0★ from 4625 reviews, but shows at wp.org #18. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Insert Html Snippet 20K+ · 4.9★ (237) wp.org #1 2 HTML Forms – Simple WordPress Forms Plugin 10K+ · 4.9★ (57) wp.org #2 3 HTML Editor Syntax Highlighter 60K+ · 4.4★ (110) wp.org #3 4 Email Template Designer – WP HTML Mail 20K+ · 4.8★ (87) wp.org #9 ↓6 5 too low 5 HTML Page Sitemap (Block and Shortcode) 10K+ · 4.4★ (24) wp.org #5 ↑1 6 Code Snippets 1M+ · 4.7★ (510) wp.org #8 2 too low 7 TablePress – Tables in WordPress made easy 600K+ · 5.0★ (4625) wp.org #18 ↑2 11 too low 8 Kwayy HTML Sitemap 6K+ · 4.7★ (18) wp.org #4 ↑1 4 too high 9 Hierarchical HTML Sitemap 4K+ · 5.0★ (12) wp.org #6 ↑1 3 too high 10 Minify HTML 10K+ · 4.7★ (33) wp.org #10 ↓6 11 Custom HTML Block Extension 7K+ · 5.0★ (13) wp.org #7 ↑1 4 too high 12 WP Super Cache 1M+ · 4.3★ (1346) wp.org #19 ↑2 7 too low 13 A Allow HTML in Category Descriptions 8K+ · 5.0★ (41) wp.org #15 ↓4 2 too low 14 Simple Sitemap – Responsive HTML Sitemap for WordPress 60K+ · 3.9★ (72) wp.org #13 ↓1 1 too high 15 CSV to HTML 300+ · 5.0★ (22) wp.org #20 ↓5 5 too low 16 WP Simple HTML Sitemap 3K+ · 4.9★ (10) wp.org #11 ↓2 5 too high 17 Export WordPress Pages to Static HTML & PDF — Static Site Export 4K+ · 3.8★ (51) wp.org #21 ↓5 4 too low 18 Always Edit In HTML 1K+ · 4.4★ (7) wp.org #14 ↓1 4 too high 19 D Display HTML Sitemap 1K+ · 4.0★ (4) wp.org #12 ↓2 7 too high 20 Protect schema.org markup in HTML editor 700+ · 5.0★ (5) wp.org #23 ↓6 3 too low 21 HTML Page Publisher 500+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #16 5 too high 22 AI to Elementor — HTML Importer for Elementor 1K+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #17 ↓3 5 too high 23 Header Footer Custom Html 1K+ · 3.0★ (2) wp.org #24 ↓1 1 too low 24 Advance Custom HTML – Show Off Code Snippets with Live Preview 10K+ · 2.5★ (4) wp.org #22 ↓4 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.