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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “item lists”

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 “item lists”, we and wp.org disagree on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 15 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.

B

Ranked above its merit

BASE Item List shows at wp.org #2 but places #20 on merit, a gap of 18 places. Its 700+ installs carry it up the search order; its 4.0★ average from 2 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Simple Custom Post Order places #10 on merit, 4.8★ from 587 reviews, but shows at wp.org #18. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 List category posts 80K+ · 4.7★ (254) wp.org #4 ↑1 3 too low 2 Admin and Site Enhancements (ASE) 200K+ · 5.0★ (423) wp.org #7 ↑1 5 too low 3 VS Event List 8K+ · 4.9★ (82) wp.org #5 ↓1 2 too low 4 Item Lists for Elementor 1K+ · 4.2★ (5) wp.org #1 3 too high 5 List categories 5K+ · 4.5★ (15) wp.org #3 2 too high 6 ElementsKit Elementor Addons – Advanced Widgets & Templates Addons for Elementor 1M+ · 4.9★ (2051) wp.org #12 ↑1 6 too low 7 W4 Post List 3K+ · 4.7★ (94) wp.org #8 ↑1 1 too low 8 Product Table & List Builder for WooCommerce 10K+ · 4.9★ (254) wp.org #13 ↑2 5 too low 9 Product Bundle Builder for WooCommerce 6K+ · 4.8★ (61) wp.org #6 ↑1 3 too high 10 Simple Custom Post Order 300K+ · 4.8★ (587) wp.org #18 ↓6 8 too low 11 Ditty – Responsive News Tickers, Sliders, and Lists 30K+ · 4.6★ (106) wp.org #9 ↑1 2 too high 12 Product Customer List for WooCommerce 9K+ · 4.9★ (75) wp.org #15 ↑1 3 too low 13 Media Library Assistant 70K+ · 4.8★ (202) wp.org #20 7 too low 14 Post Types Order 600K+ · 4.5★ (296) wp.org #21 ↓1 7 too low 15 Ultimate Post List 2K+ · 4.6★ (13) wp.org #11 ↑3 4 too high 16 BrikPanel: WooCommerce Dashboard & Analytics, Abandoned Cart Recovery, Order Export, Inventory Management & Bulk Editor 1K+ · 5.0★ (55) wp.org #24 8 too low 17 WooCommerce Stripe Payment Gateway 700K+ · 3.1★ (237) wp.org #14 ↓3 3 too high 18 Dashboard To-Do List 1K+ · 5.0★ (8) wp.org #16 ↑1 2 too high 19 Plugins List 700+ · 5.0★ (12) wp.org #22 ↓1 3 too low 20 B BASE Item List 700+ · 4.0★ (2) wp.org #2 18 too high 21 Icon List Block – Add Icon-Based Lists with Custom Styles 4K+ · 3.7★ (6) wp.org #10 ↓4 11 too high 22 Mailchimp List Subscribe Form 60K+ · 2.6★ (77) wp.org #23 ↓1 1 too low 23 Purchased Items Column for WooCommerce Orders 700+ · 5.0★ (9) wp.org #19 ↓1 4 too high 24 Drag & Drop Menu Items 60+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #17 ↑2 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.