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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “human resource”

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 “human resource”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 8 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.

Ranked above its merit

WP-HR Manager: The Human Resources Plugin for WordPress shows at wp.org #2 but places #21 on merit, a gap of 19 places. Its 200+ installs carry it up the search order; its 2.0★ average from 5 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Blackhole for Bad Bots places #10 on merit, 4.7★ from 148 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 UpdraftPlus: WP Backup & Migration Plugin 4M+ · 4.8★ (8708) wp.org #1 2 Translate WordPress with GTranslate 900K+ · 4.9★ (4962) wp.org #3 1 too low 3 WPForms – AI Form Builder for WordPress – Contact Forms, Payment Forms, Survey Form, Quiz & More 5M+ · 4.8★ (14387) wp.org #4 1 too low 4 Anti-Spam, Spam FireWall by CleanTalk 200K+ · 4.8★ (3221) wp.org #5 1 too low 5 WP-Optimize – Cache, Compress images, Minify & Clean database to boost page speed & performance 1M+ · 4.8★ (2617) wp.org #7 2 too low 6 Chatway Live Chat – AI Chatbot, Customer Support, FAQ & Helpdesk Customer Service & Chat Buttons 30K+ · 5.0★ (775) wp.org #9 ↓1 3 too low 7 Simple CAPTCHA with Cloudflare Turnstile 200K+ · 4.7★ (262) wp.org #6 1 too high 8 Burst Statistics – Simple WordPress Analytics (Google Analytics Alternative) 200K+ · 4.9★ (186) wp.org #8 ↑1 9 WPVibe – MCP Server for WordPress, works with Claude, ChatGPT & other AI MCP agents 100K+ · 5.0★ (199) wp.org #11 2 too low 10 Blackhole for Bad Bots 30K+ · 4.7★ (148) wp.org #14 4 too low 11 Password Protected 300K+ · 4.4★ (142) wp.org #12 1 too low 12 WPML Multilingual & Multicurrency for WooCommerce 100K+ · 4.2★ (454) wp.org #16 4 too low 13 Real Cookie Banner: GDPR & ePrivacy Cookie Consent 100K+ · 4.9★ (492) wp.org #21 ↑2 8 too low 14 WPBot – AI ChatBot for Live Support, Lead Generation, WordPress Automation, AI Services 5K+ · 4.7★ (124) wp.org #13 1 too high 15 Image CAPTCHA for Contact Form 7 and WPForms by HookAndHook (DSGVO/GDPR) 70K+ · 4.7★ (49) wp.org #15 16 Gutenberg Essential Blocks – Page Builder for Gutenberg Blocks & Patterns 100K+ · 4.9★ (216) wp.org #24 8 too low 17 Accessibility Tools & Alt Text Finder 3K+ · 4.9★ (69) wp.org #22 ↓1 5 too low 18 Webheadcoder Multi-Step Forms for Contact Form 7 50K+ · 4.2★ (49) wp.org #23 ↓1 5 too low 19 SurveyX Builder – Survey, Poll, Quiz & Feedback Form 2K+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #18 1 too high 20 Innovs HR – Complete Human Resource Management System for Your Business 10+ · 3.7★ (3) wp.org #10 10 too high 21 WP-HR Manager: The Human Resources Plugin for WordPress 200+ · 2.0★ (5) wp.org #2 19 too high 22 Portugal DPD Pickup and Lockers network for WooCommerce 200+ · 4.3★ (4) wp.org #19 ↑1 3 too high 23 Melu Live Chat 80+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #17 6 too high 24 Magic robots.txt 1K+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #20 ↓1 4 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.