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

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 creation”, 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

Sendcloud for WooCommerce: Automated Shipping, Branded Tracking & Returns shows at wp.org #6 but places #19 on merit, a gap of 13 places. Its 7K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 3.0★ average from 13 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Advanced Ads – Ad Manager & AdSense places #11 on merit, 4.9★ from 1463 reviews, but shows at wp.org #20. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin signals wp.org

WebToffee WooCommerce PDF Invoices, Packing Slips, Delivery Notes & Shipping Labels 50K+ · 4.9★ (285) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #1 2

Kadence Blocks — Page Builder Toolkit for Gutenberg Editor 600K+ · 4.8★ (333) heavy footprint wp.org #2 3

Masteriyo LMS – LMS Course Builder, Quizzes & Certificates 6K+ · 4.8★ (184) throws errorsnot PHP-currentheavy footprint wp.org #3 4

morkva UA Shipping – Nova Poshta, Ukrposhta, Rozetka, Nova Global 1K+ · 4.9★ (29) wp.org #4 5

Fluent Forms – Customizable Contact Forms, Survey, Quiz, & Conversational Form Builder 800K+ · 4.8★ (807) wp.org #8 3 too low 6

Branda – White Label & Branding, Free Login Page Customizer 10K+ · 4.5★ (30) wp.org #5 1 too high 7

Really Simple Security – Simple and Performant Security (formerly Really Simple SSL) 3M+ · 4.9★ (8869) wp.org #15 8 too low 8

Code Snippets 1M+ · 4.7★ (510) not PHP-current wp.org #9 1 too low 9

Advanced Custom Fields (ACF®) 2M+ · 4.5★ (1440) heavy footprint wp.org #11 2 too low 10

Forminator Forms – Contact Form, Payment Form & Custom Form Builder 600K+ · 4.8★ (2143) wp.org #18 8 too low 11

Advanced Ads – Ad Manager & AdSense 90K+ · 4.9★ (1463) not PHP-current wp.org #20 9 too low 12

Easyship WooCommerce Shipping Rates 2K+ · 4.2★ (54) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #7 5 too high 13

My Calendar – Accessible Event Manager 20K+ · 4.7★ (159) wp.org #19 6 too low 14

SmartyParcel – DHL Express, GLS, InPost & Nova Post for WooCommerce 7K+ · 4.6★ (56) wp.org #13 1 too high 15

MultiParcels Shipping For WooCommerce 4K+ · 4.6★ (62) wp.org #16 1 too low 16

Events Manager – Calendar, Bookings, Tickets, Appointments and more! 60K+ · 4.2★ (551) not PHP-current wp.org #21 5 too low 17

DHL Shipping Germany for WooCommerce 4K+ · 4.0★ (47) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #12 5 too high 18

Colissimo shipping methods for WooCommerce 10K+ · 3.7★ (28) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #10 8 too high 19

Sendcloud for WooCommerce: Automated Shipping, Branded Tracking & Returns 7K+ · 3.0★ (13) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews wp.org #6 13 too high 20

Smart Send 300+ · 5.0★ (5) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews wp.org #22 2 too low 21

DHL eCommerce (Benelux) for WooCommerce 2K+ · 5.0★ (2) thin reviews wp.org #14 7 too high 22

eCommerce Shipping Dashboard by UPS for WooCommerce 1K+ · 3.5★ (6) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews wp.org #23 1 too low 23

ScanVault Label Designer 10+ · 0.0★ (0) thin reviews wp.org #17 6 too high 24

ShipAny WooCommerce: Ship, Label, Tracking 200+ · 4.0★ (1) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews wp.org #24

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.