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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “last changes”

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 “last changes”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 15 of the top 20. 1 plugin is 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

bbp last post shows at wp.org #11 but places #22 on merit, a gap of 11 places. Its 200+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 10 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Folders – Unlimited Folders to Organize Media Library Folder, Pages, Posts, File Manager places #10 on merit, 5.0★ from 1526 reviews, but shows at wp.org #22. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 List Last Changes 1K+ · 4.8★ (11) wp.org #1 2 When Last Login 40K+ · 4.7★ (37) wp.org #2 3 WP Last Modified Info 40K+ · 4.9★ (855) wp.org #6 ↓2 3 too low 4 Simple History – Track, Log, and Audit WordPress Changes 300K+ · 4.9★ (491) wp.org #5 ↑3 1 too low 5 Activity Log – Monitor User and Agent Changes 200K+ · 4.3★ (74) wp.org #4 ↑2 1 too high 6 Wordfence Security – Firewall, Malware Scan, and Login Security 5M+ · 4.7★ (5039) wp.org #9 ↓2 3 too low 7 WP Last Login 10K+ · 3.8★ (26) wp.org #3 4 too high 8 Members – Membership & User Role Editor Plugin 300K+ · 4.9★ (1281) wp.org #18 10 too low 9 Classic Editor 8M+ · 4.9★ (1251) wp.org #15 6 too low 10 Folders – Unlimited Folders to Organize Media Library Folder, Pages, Posts, File Manager 90K+ · 5.0★ (1526) wp.org #22 12 too low 11 UpdraftPlus: WP Backup & Migration Plugin 4M+ · 4.8★ (8706) wp.org #20 ↓2 9 too low 12 Admin and Site Enhancements (ASE) 200K+ · 5.0★ (423) wp.org #19 7 too low 13 Jetpack – AI Agents & MCP, Security, Backup & Analytics 3M+ · 3.7★ (2408) wp.org #16 3 too low 14 Force First and Last Name as Display Name 2K+ · 4.3★ (18) wp.org #7 ↓2 7 too high 15 All-In-One Security (AIOS) – Security and Firewall 1M+ · 4.7★ (1720) wp.org #23 ↓3 8 too low 16 Last Modified Timestamp 6K+ · 5.0★ (28) wp.org #14 2 too high 17 Admin Dashboard Last Edits 900+ · 5.0★ (8) wp.org #8 ↑1 9 too high 18 Melapress File Monitor 5K+ · 4.1★ (32) wp.org #12 6 too high 19 GTM4WP – A Google Tag Manager (GTM) plugin for WordPress 700K+ · 4.5★ (155) wp.org #24 ↓3 5 too low 20 Change Last Modified Date 3K+ · 4.3★ (12) wp.org #10 10 too high 21 Bulk Datetime Change 6K+ · 5.0★ (8) wp.org #13 8 too high 22 B bbp last post 200+ · 5.0★ (10) wp.org #11 11 too high 23 Easy MCP AI – Connect Claude to WordPress: MCP Server for ChatGPT & AI Agents 30K+ · 4.9★ (16) wp.org #21 2 too high 24 Lock Last Modified Date 80+ · 4.0★ (1) wp.org #17 ↓1 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.