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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “learndash hosting”

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 “learndash hosting”, we and wp.org disagree on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 15 of the top 20.

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

GoDAM – Video Hosting for LMS & Online Courses shows at wp.org #6 but places #23 on merit, a gap of 17 places. Its 100+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 2 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

LearnPress – WordPress LMS Plugin for Create and Sell Online Courses places #12 on merit, 4.3★ from 597 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 Spectra Legacy – Gutenberg Blocks 1M+ · 4.7★ (1872) wp.org #4 3 too low 2 Essential Addons for Elementor – Popular Elementor Templates & Widgets 1M+ · 4.9★ (4132) wp.org #5 3 too low 3 FluentCRM – Email Newsletter, Automation, Email Marketing, Email Campaigns, Optins, Leads, and CRM Solution 80K+ · 4.8★ (250) wp.org #7 ↓1 4 too low 4 Livid – Video Hosting 300+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #1 3 too high 5 Better Messages – Chat Rooms, Group Chat, Private Messages & AI Chat Bots 10K+ · 4.8★ (142) wp.org #9 4 too low 6 Noptin – Newsletter, New Post Notifications & Email Automation 10K+ · 4.5★ (120) wp.org #8 2 too low 7 VdoCipher: Secure Video Player and Hosting 2K+ · 4.2★ (14) wp.org #3 4 too high 8 Presto Player 100K+ · 4.8★ (346) wp.org #12 ↓2 4 too low 9 Analytify – Google Analytics 4 Tracking and Reporting in WordPress 20K+ · 4.7★ (488) wp.org #14 ↓1 5 too low 10 Prevent Direct Access – Protect WordPress Files 10K+ · 4.6★ (297) wp.org #13 ↓2 3 too low 11 SureCart – Ecommerce Made Easy For Selling Physical Products, Digital Downloads, Subscriptions, Donations, & Payments 80K+ · 4.8★ (289) wp.org #20 ↑1 9 too low 12 LearnPress – WordPress LMS Plugin for Create and Sell Online Courses 70K+ · 4.3★ (597) wp.org #22 10 too low 13 hCaptcha for WP 70K+ · 4.6★ (88) wp.org #17 ↓2 4 too low 14 Spotlightr – Secure Video Hosting for WordPress, Courses & LearnDash 200+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #2 12 too high 15 SureMail – SMTP and Email Logs Plugin with Amazon SES, Postmark, and Other Providers 200K+ · 4.7★ (25) wp.org #16 1 too low 16 Enable Abilities for MCP 5K+ · 5.0★ (17) wp.org #15 ↓3 1 too high 17 FlexMeeting – Webinar & Meeting Plugin for Jitsi Meet 1K+ · 4.5★ (38) wp.org #18 1 too low 18 Virtual Classroom & Video Conferencing – BigBlueButton 400+ · 4.6★ (10) wp.org #11 ↓3 7 too high 19 Subscriptions for WooCommerce with Stripe Recurring Payments 1K+ · 4.9★ (25) wp.org #24 ↓10 5 too low 20 Infinite Uploads – Offload, Optimize & Organize Your Media Library 800+ · 4.4★ (20) wp.org #19 ↓2 1 too high 21 Creator LMS – WordPress LMS Plugin for Coaches, Cohorts & Course Creators 100+ · 5.0★ (16) wp.org #23 ↓3 2 too low 22 Add From Server Lite 4K+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #10 ↓3 12 too high 23 GoDAM – Video Hosting for LMS & Online Courses 100+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #6 17 too high 24 Easy PHP Settings 1K+ · 5.0★ (7) wp.org #21 ↓2 3 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.