Plugin Pulse Beta
← Rankings

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

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 “karma”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 15 of the top 20. 3 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

Karma Protected Content shows at wp.org #6 but places #16 on merit, a gap of 10 places. Its — 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

WP YouTube Lyte places #4 on merit, 4.8★ from 206 reviews, but shows at wp.org #11. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Multibanco, MB WAY, Credit card, Apple Pay, Google Pay, Payshop, and PIX (ifthenpay) for WooCommerce 8K+ · 5.0★ (21) wp.org #1 ↑2 2 Decent Comments 2K+ · 4.6★ (20) wp.org #3 ↓1 1 too low 3 Post and Page Builder by BoldGrid – Visual Drag and Drop Editor 50K+ · 4.7★ (140) wp.org #9 ↓1 6 too low 4 WP YouTube Lyte 20K+ · 4.8★ (206) wp.org #11 ↓1 7 too low 5 Ultimate Reviews 400+ · 4.1★ (60) wp.org #4 ↑1 1 too high 6 EZ Anti-Spam Comments with reCAPTCHA 300+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #2 ↓1 4 too high 7 Karma Music Player by Kadar 600+ · 4.7★ (40) wp.org #14 ↓2 7 too low 8 Amazon Link Localization by BestAzon 100+ · 4.3★ (44) wp.org #17 ↓2 9 too low 9 Google Webfonts For Woo Framework 200+ · 5.0★ (13) wp.org #22 ↓2 13 too low 10 MyStyle Custom Product Designer 50+ · 3.9★ (13) wp.org #13 ↓2 3 too low 11 L Like This 1K+ · 4.9★ (7) wp.org #20 ↓2 9 too low 12 B bbPress Votes 70+ · 3.9★ (15) wp.org #15 ↓2 3 too low 13 Karma Memorials 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #5 ↓1 8 too high 14 Progressive Web Apps 10+ · 4.5★ (4) wp.org #16 ↓2 2 too low 15 Karma Docs – Documentation & Knowledge Base — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #7 8 too high 16 Karma Protected Content — · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #6 10 too high 17 Texoly – Guest Post & Backlink Workflow — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #8 ↓1 9 too high 18 A AstrologyAPI — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #10 8 too high 19 xili Post in Post 50+ · 4.5★ (4) wp.org #19 ↓2 20 Vitxi Converse – Intelligent AI chatbot for Social Media — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #12 ↓3 8 too high 21 B Bainternet User Ranks 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #18 ↓2 3 too high 22 W Wireclub Embedded Chat for WordPress 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #23 ↓1 1 too low 23 C Crypto tips — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #24 ↓3 1 too low 24 Kripto Para Dönüştürücü ve Döviz Hesaplama 40+ · 3.5★ (2) wp.org #21 ↓2 3 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.