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

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 “inserter”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 15 of the top 20. 2 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

DKI Dynamic Location Inserter shows at wp.org #8 but places #21 on merit, a gap of 13 places. Its 50+ 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

Lightweight Accordion places #7 on merit, 5.0★ from 60 reviews, but shows at wp.org #24. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Ad Inserter – Ad Manager & AdSense Ads 300K+ · 4.9★ (2433) wp.org #1 2 Advanced Ads – Ad Manager & AdSense 90K+ · 4.9★ (1463) wp.org #2 ↑9 3 Insert Special Characters 3K+ · 4.9★ (8) wp.org #6 ↓1 3 too low 4 AdFlow – Ad Inserter & Ad Manager: AdSense, Banner Ads & ads.txt 3K+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #3 ↓1 1 too high 5 Block Manager 4K+ · 4.9★ (13) wp.org #10 ↓1 5 too low 6 Highlighting Code Block 10K+ · 4.5★ (20) wp.org #11 ↓1 5 too low 7 Lightweight Accordion 10K+ · 5.0★ (60) wp.org #24 17 too low 8 AdX Ad Inserter – Adsense and Ad Manager Ads 80+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #4 ↓1 4 too high 9 Hyperlink Group Block 7K+ · 4.3★ (14) wp.org #12 3 too low 10 WP-ShowHide 9K+ · 4.2★ (43) wp.org #19 9 too low 11 Easy PayPal & Stripe Buy Now Button 10K+ · 4.5★ (24) wp.org #21 10 too low 12 Coupon Creator 1K+ · 4.3★ (37) wp.org #17 ↑1 5 too low 13 Automatic Block Inserter 30+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #5 ↓1 8 too high 14 Vertical News Scroller 5K+ · 4.3★ (17) wp.org #20 6 too low 15 Subscriptions & Memberships for PayPal 900+ · 3.9★ (12) wp.org #15 ↑1 16 Easy Testimonial Slider and Form 700+ · 4.8★ (5) wp.org #14 ↑1 2 too high 17 GAM Ad Inserter – Adx & Ad Manager Ads 30+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #13 4 too high 18 Useful Blocks 10K+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #7 ↓1 11 too high 19 Super Cool Ad Inserter Plugin 600+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #9 ↓1 10 too high 20 DesignSetGo 8K+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #22 ↑1 2 too low 21 DKI Dynamic Location Inserter 50+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #8 ↓1 13 too high 22 Soft Hyphen Inserter 30+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #16 6 too high 23 Wavy Divider 700+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #23 ↓1 24 Ad Auto Insert H 900+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #18 ↓1 6 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.