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← Rankings

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

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 “label”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 11 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.

Ranked above its merit

Hide Archive Label shows at wp.org #6 but places #23 on merit, a gap of 17 places. Its 900+ 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

SEOPress – AI SEO Plugin & On-site SEO places #6 on merit, 4.8★ from 1267 reviews, but shows at wp.org #19. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 White Label CMS 200K+ · 4.7★ (114) wp.org #1 2 White Label – WordPress Custom Admin, Custom Login Page, and Custom Dashboard 10K+ · 5.0★ (21) wp.org #2 ↑1 3 Free Shipping Label and Progress Bar for WooCommerce 5K+ · 5.0★ (43) wp.org #3 ↓1 4 WebToffee WooCommerce PDF Invoices, Packing Slips, Delivery Notes & Shipping Labels 50K+ · 4.9★ (285) wp.org #5 1 too low 5 Advanced Woo Labels – Product Labels & Badges for WooCommerce 10K+ · 5.0★ (64) wp.org #4 1 too high 6 SEOPress – AI SEO Plugin & On-site SEO 300K+ · 4.8★ (1267) wp.org #19 ↑1 13 too low 7 WooCommerce 7M+ · 4.5★ (4833) wp.org #10 ↓4 3 too low 8 Product Labels For Woocommerce (Sale Badges) 10K+ · 4.6★ (54) wp.org #7 ↑7 1 too high 9 Advanced Product Labels for WooCommerce 10K+ · 4.8★ (252) wp.org #12 ↓2 3 too low 10 Adminify – White Label, Admin Menu Editor, Login Customizer 6K+ · 4.3★ (109) wp.org #15 5 too low 11 Branda – White Label & Branding, Free Login Page Customizer 10K+ · 4.5★ (30) wp.org #13 2 too low 12 Barcode Generator: Print Product Labels & Order Barcode Label (A4, Thermal/Roll, Letter) 900+ · 4.5★ (74) wp.org #18 ↓2 6 too low 13 Product Badge, Label, Countdown Timer for WooCommerce – Sale Booster 5K+ · 4.8★ (30) wp.org #14 ↓3 1 too low 14 Masteriyo LMS – LMS Course Builder, Quizzes & Certificates 6K+ · 4.8★ (184) wp.org #23 ↑1 9 too low 15 Custom Price Labels for WooCommerce 1K+ · 4.3★ (15) wp.org #11 ↑1 4 too high 16 YITH Color and Label Variations for WooCommerce 9K+ · 3.6★ (22) wp.org #9 7 too high 17 Custom Add to Cart Button Label and Link for WooCommerce 2K+ · 4.6★ (27) wp.org #20 ↓1 3 too low 18 Custom Add to Cart labels for WooCommerce 5K+ · 3.9★ (14) wp.org #17 1 too high 19 Product Labels, Quick View, Buy Now, Pre-Orders, Frequently Bought Together & More for WooCommerce – Merchant 9K+ · 4.2★ (11) wp.org #21 2 too low 20 Print Anywhere & Create PDFs of Order Receipts, Invoices, Labels & More. 1K+ · 4.7★ (18) wp.org #24 ↓1 4 too low 21 Better Aria Label Support 4K+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #8 13 too high 22 NGD Custom Add to Cart Label for WooCommerce 400+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #16 6 too high 23 Hide Archive Label 900+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #6 ↑1 17 too high 24 F4 Simple White Label 200+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #22 2 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.