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

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 “kirki”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 14 of the top 20. 2 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 the install base is organic or host-pushed, and its risk of being pulled.

Ranked above its merit

Futurio Extra shows at wp.org #3 but places #13 on merit, a gap of 10 places. Its 10K+ 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 All Import – Drag & Drop Import for CSV, XML, Excel & Google Sheets places #5 on merit, 4.7★ from 1966 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 Kirki – Freeform Page Builder, Website Builder & Customizer 400K+ · 4.5★ (81) wp.org #1 2 Tutor LMS – eLearning and online course solution 100K+ · 4.4★ (590) wp.org #2 3 M Mesmerize Companion 50K+ · 4.4★ (51) wp.org #4 1 too low 4 Use Any Font | Custom Font Uploader 200K+ · 4.7★ (1148) wp.org #15 11 too low 5 WP All Import – Drag & Drop Import for CSV, XML, Excel & Google Sheets 100K+ · 4.7★ (1966) wp.org #18 13 too low 6 O One Page Express Companion 10K+ · 4.7★ (11) wp.org #5 ↑1 1 too high 7 M Materialis Companion 6K+ · 4.7★ (10) wp.org #7 8 ReviewX – Multi-Criteria Reviews for WooCommerce with Google Reviews & Schema 6K+ · 4.5★ (85) wp.org #21 13 too low 9 XT Variation Swatches for WooCommerce 500+ · 4.7★ (32) wp.org #20 11 too low 10 Powerkit – Supercharge your WordPress Site 10K+ · 4.5★ (14) wp.org #17 7 too low 11 Wbcom Designs – Custom Font Uploader 3K+ · 3.8★ (14) wp.org #10 1 too high 12 WPEPP – Essential Security, Password Protect & Login Page Customizer 3K+ · 4.1★ (19) wp.org #19 7 too low 13 Futurio Extra 10K+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #3 10 too high 14 Envo Extra 20K+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #6 ↓1 8 too high 15 XT Quick View for WooCommerce 300+ · 3.8★ (13) wp.org #22 7 too low 16 S Slivery Extender 1K+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #8 8 too high 17 S Spice Social Share 4K+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #9 8 too high 18 RB Theme Helper — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #11 7 too high 19 H Home Improvement Companion 50+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #12 7 too high 20 Elevate Alerts – Attractive Notification Banners — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #13 7 too high 21 Rank Bix SEO – Lightweight SEO Toolkit with Multi-AI 10+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #23 2 too low 22 Bosa Starter Sites 30K+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #16 6 too high 23 TextBuilder 4K+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #14 9 too high 24 Pedro Demo Import — · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #24 ↓1

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.