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

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 “instapaper”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 9 of the top 18. 5 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

Unstoppable Share Buttons shows at wp.org #6 but places #10 on merit, a gap of 4 places. Its 10+ 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.

merit plugin signals wp.org

Blog2Social: Social Media Auto Post & Scheduler 40K+ · 4.5★ (2107) not PHP-current wp.org #1 2

Professional Social Sharing Buttons, Icons & Related Posts – Shareaholic 10K+ · 4.4★ (1053) stale but ranked wp.org #5 3 too low 3

NextScripts: Social Networks Auto-Poster 20K+ · 3.3★ (617) throws errorsnot PHP-current low rating, top placement wp.org #2 1 too high 4

ShareToSocial – Social Media Share Buttons & Sharing Icons 100+ · 4.6★ (5) thin reviews wp.org #3 1 too high 5

WiraKit For Elementor – Powerful Elementor Widgets And Theme Builder 70+ · 5.0★ (2) thin reviews wp.org #4 2 too high 7

Keyring 1K+ · 4.3★ (6) closure risk thin reviewsstale but ranked wp.org #9 2 too low 8 K Keyring Social Importers 70+ · 5.0★ (3) closure risk thin reviews wp.org #11 3 too low 9

PostRSS Advanced Dashboard Integration — · 0.0★ (0) thin reviews wp.org #7 2 too high 10

Unstoppable Share Buttons 10+ · 5.0★ (1) thin reviews wp.org #6 4 too high 11

Lion Social Share — · 0.0★ (0) thin reviews wp.org #8 3 too high 12 X xBooster Social Icons with Counter 10+ · 4.5★ (2) closure risk thin reviews wp.org #16 4 too low 13

Floating Share Button 10+ · 0.0★ (0) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviewsstale but ranked wp.org #10 3 too high 14 P Pocket Readability Instapaper Buttons — · 0.0★ (0) closure risk thin reviews wp.org #15 1 too low 15 A All In One Social Network Buttons 10+ · 0.0★ (0) closure risk thin reviews wp.org #18 3 too low 16 R Read Later Buttons 10+ · 5.0★ (1) not PHP-currentclosure risk thin reviews wp.org #14 2 too high 17 J Jetpack Sharing Source Pack 30+ · 5.0★ (1) throws errorsnot PHP-currentclosure risk thin reviews wp.org #13 4 too high 18 W WP-Lifestream2 10+ · 0.0★ (0) throws errorsnot PHP-currentclosure risk thin reviews wp.org #17 1 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.