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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “integrity checker”

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 “integrity checker”, we and wp.org disagree on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 14 of the top 20.

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 the install base is organic or host-pushed, and its risk of being pulled.

Ranked above its merit

InTouch Integrity Guard shows at wp.org #6 but places #13 on merit, a gap of 7 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.

Buried gem

Anti-Malware Security and Brute-Force Firewall places #4 on merit, 4.9★ from 783 reviews, but shows at wp.org #8. 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 #4 3 too low 2 Integrity Checker 200+ · 4.8★ (6) wp.org #1 1 too high 3 NinjaScanner – Virus & Malware scan 40K+ · 4.0★ (36) wp.org #2 1 too high 4 Anti-Malware Security and Brute-Force Firewall 100K+ · 4.9★ (783) wp.org #8 4 too low 5 Sucuri Security – Auditing, Malware Scanner and Security Hardening 600K+ · 4.2★ (386) wp.org #5 6 Security Ninja – WordPress Security & Firewall 7K+ · 4.7★ (101) wp.org #7 1 too low 7 Better Find and Replace – AI-Powered Suggestions 40K+ · 4.6★ (171) wp.org #11 4 too low 8 S Site Health Tools 500+ · 4.5★ (2) wp.org #3 5 too high 9 Remote Website Management by Watchful 3K+ · 5.0★ (6) wp.org #14 5 too low 10 Site Lockdown Security 700+ · 5.0★ (5) wp.org #18 8 too low 11 Activity Guard – Security Scanner, Activity Log with IP blocking 20+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #17 6 too low 12 EqualWeb Accessibility 4K+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #9 3 too high 13 InTouch Integrity Guard 10+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #6 7 too high 14 DevDome Malware Scanner – WordPress Malware Removal & Security Scanner 300+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #15 1 too low 15 Image Integrity Scanner 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #10 5 too high 16 VDL Site Leak Scanner – 404 & Broken Link Checker — · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #19 3 too low 17 Affiliate Link Integrity Checker — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #12 5 too high 18 WordSec – Malware Scanner & Removal, Web Application Firewall (WAF), and 2FA 20+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #21 3 too low 19 Turbo Guard – Security & Malware Scanner 20+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #13 6 too high 20 O ODC Internal Link Integrity Scanner — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #20 21 Opace AI Content Checker & Detector — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #22 1 too low 22 Nexura Security — Malware Scanner, Firewall, 2FA & WordPress Security 20+ · 3.0★ (2) wp.org #16 6 too high 23 VulnCue 10+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #23 24 AI Discovery Files – llms.txt & AI Visibility 100+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #24

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.