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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “law firm”

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 “law firm”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 10 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 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

Clio Grow Form shows at wp.org #5 but places #18 on merit, a gap of 13 places. Its 1K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 2.3★ average from 3 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

HivePress – Business Directory, Listings & Classified Ads Plugin places #7 on merit, 4.9★ from 221 reviews, but shows at wp.org #13. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Complianz GDPR/CCPA Cookie Consent Banner 1M+ · 4.7★ (1661) wp.org #1 2 Appointment Booking Plugin – LatePoint | Calendar & Scheduling for WordPress 100K+ · 4.9★ (101) wp.org #3 1 too low 3 Easy Appointments 10K+ · 4.3★ (131) wp.org #4 1 too low 4 Legal Text Connector of the IT-Recht Kanzlei 10K+ · 4.3★ (6) wp.org #2 2 too high 5 WP DSGVO Tools (GDPR) 10K+ · 4.0★ (116) wp.org #6 1 too low 6 HT Mega Addons for Elementor – Elementor Widgets & Template Builder 70K+ · 4.1★ (66) wp.org #7 1 too low 7 HivePress – Business Directory, Listings & Classified Ads Plugin 10K+ · 4.9★ (221) wp.org #13 6 too low 8 Privacy Policy Generator, Terms & Conditions, GDPR, CCPA, Cookie Policy & Disclaimer Templates – WPLP Legal Pages 10K+ · 4.7★ (93) wp.org #10 2 too low 9 WP Maps – Google Maps, OpenStreetMap, Mapbox, Store Locator with Search, Filters & Listings 60K+ · 4.3★ (122) wp.org #8 1 too high 10 Oasis Workflow 600+ · 4.8★ (51) wp.org #15 5 too low 11 MPG – Multiple Page Generator, Bulk Landing Pages & Programmatic SEO 2K+ · 3.9★ (27) wp.org #12 1 too low 12 MotoPress Appointment Booking 2K+ · 4.5★ (21) wp.org #17 5 too low 13 connectDaily Events Calendar Plugin 100+ · 4.5★ (16) wp.org #19 6 too low 14 Trusty Whistleblowing Solution 400+ · 5.0★ (15) wp.org #23 9 too low 15 WebDefender Security – Protection & AntiSpam 1K+ · 4.0★ (18) wp.org #22 7 too low 16 Team Builder Member Showcase 1K+ · 3.8★ (4) wp.org #11 5 too high 17 Business Card Block – present your team and contact info in style 1K+ · 4.3★ (4) wp.org #16 1 too high 18 Clio Grow Form 1K+ · 2.3★ (3) wp.org #5 13 too high 19 LegalWeb Cloud 300+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #9 10 too high 20 GovernDocs Document Management – Agenda, Minutes, Meetings, Reports & more 100+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #14 6 too high 21 Clio Grow Website Chat 40+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #21 22 Change Author Base 10+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #18 4 too high 23 Albertoit Law Office Manager — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #24 1 too low 24 Block & Optimize PDFs – PDF.dk 20+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #20 4 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.