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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “interactive blueprints”

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 “interactive blueprints”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 12 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

Photo Sphere Viewer – 360° Virtual Tour, Panorama, 360 Video & AR 3D Viewer shows at wp.org #17 but places #24 on merit, a gap of 7 places. Its 600+ installs carry it up the search order; its 3.5★ average from 2 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Listdom: AI-powered Business Directory with Classifieds Ads Listings places #6 on merit, 4.9★ from 60 reviews, but shows at wp.org #16. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Code Snippets 1M+ · 4.7★ (510) wp.org #1 2 Booster for WooCommerce – PDF Invoices, Abandoned Cart, Variation Swatches & 100+ Tools 30K+ · 4.6★ (535) wp.org #6 4 too low 3 Mapster WP Maps 3K+ · 4.9★ (54) wp.org #4 1 too low 4 Advanced Sidebar Menu 10K+ · 4.5★ (37) wp.org #10 6 too low 5 Magical Posts Display – Elementor Advanced Posts widgets 3K+ · 4.4★ (10) wp.org #5 6 Listdom: AI-powered Business Directory with Classifieds Ads Listings 1K+ · 4.9★ (60) wp.org #16 10 too low 7 WordPress Playground Block 200+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #2 5 too high 8 PicPoints – Interactive Image Map & Hotspot Builder 70+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #3 5 too high 9 WPSmartPay – Payment Forms, Invoices, Donations & Subscriptions 100+ · 4.7★ (18) wp.org #12 3 too low 10 LandTech Extras for Elementor 80+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #8 2 too high 11 QRcdr – Frontend Generator for Custom and Dynamic QR Codes 20+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #21 ↓1 10 too low 12 AI Marketing Expert — AI Email Marketing, AI Content Generator, SEO Analyzer, AI Workflow Automation, Social Media & Ai Chatbot 2K+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #7 5 too high 13 SimpliPlot Interactive Mapper — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #11 2 too high 14 Panorama Block – immerse visitors in 360 degree views 700+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #9 5 too high 15 CartoBlocks for Leaflet 10+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #24 ↓1 9 too low 16 JTZL's Dark Mode 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #15 1 too high 17 3D/AR/VR Model Viewer for WooCommerce 10+ · 4.0★ (1) wp.org #14 3 too high 18 AICOM – AI Commander 60+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #13 5 too high 19 Security Hardener 200+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #19 20 PlanIt Event Manager – Responsive Event Calendar & Management Plugin 50+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #22 ↓1 2 too low 21 Custom Login Page Designer – Login Customizer, White Label Branding & Login Redirects — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #23 ↓1 2 too low 22 Table of Contents (TOC) Block – Fast & SEO Friendly 10+ · 4.0★ (1) wp.org #20 ↓1 2 too high 23 DominoPost – Advanced Post Editor with AI Writer, Link Building Suite, Free Google Search Console & GA4 Analytics 100+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #18 5 too high 24 Photo Sphere Viewer – 360° Virtual Tour, Panorama, 360 Video & AR 3D Viewer 600+ · 3.5★ (2) wp.org #17 7 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.