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

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 “left”, we and wp.org disagree on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 8 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

WP ESIGNATURE RTL (Right to Left) shows at wp.org #9 but places #23 on merit, a gap of 14 places. Its 100+ installs carry it up the search order; its 0.0★ average from 0 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

All-In-One Security (AIOS) – Security and Firewall places #9 on merit, 4.7★ from 1720 reviews, but shows at wp.org #14. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin signals wp.org

Translate WordPress with GTranslate 900K+ · 4.9★ (4962) wp.org #2 ↑1 1 too low 2

Free Shipping Bar: Amount Left for Free Shipping for WooCommerce 2K+ · 5.0★ (26) wp.org #1 1 too high 3

Max Mega Menu 300K+ · 4.8★ (882) wp.org #3 ↑1 4

TranslatePress – Translate Multilingual sites with AI Translation 400K+ · 4.7★ (1667) wp.org #5 1 too low 5

Complianz GDPR/CCPA Cookie Consent Banner 1M+ · 4.7★ (1668) wp.org #8 ↑2 3 too low 6

Cart Abandonment Recovery for WooCommerce – Recover Lost Sales with Automated Emails 300K+ · 4.8★ (625) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #6 ↑1 7

پارسی دیت – Parsi Date 100K+ · 4.6★ (130) wp.org #7 ↑1 8

MailPoet – Newsletters, Email Marketing, and Automation 500K+ · 4.4★ (1435) heavy footprint wp.org #10 ↓1 2 too low 9

All-In-One Security (AIOS) – Security and Firewall 1M+ · 4.7★ (1720) wp.org #14 ↓1 5 too low 10

Table of Contents Plus – Automatic Table of Contents for Posts & Pages 200K+ · 4.5★ (187) wp.org #12 ↑3 2 too low 11

WooCommerce Stripe Payment Gateway 700K+ · 3.1★ (237) throws errorsnot PHP-current low rating, top placement wp.org #4 ↑2 7 too high 12

User Role Editor 700K+ · 4.5★ (288) wp.org #13 ↑1 1 too low 13

Recent Posts Widget With Thumbnails 100K+ · 4.8★ (215) wp.org #18 ↓1 5 too low 14

WP Super Cache 1M+ · 4.3★ (1346) wp.org #16 ↑2 2 too low 15

Email Templates Customizer and Designer for WordPress and WooCommerce 20K+ · 4.6★ (133) wp.org #17 ↑5 2 too low 16

String locator 100K+ · 4.6★ (125) wp.org #20 ↓1 4 too low 17

Simple Social Media Share Buttons – Social Sharing for Everyone 20K+ · 4.8★ (194) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #15 ↑1 2 too high 18

WP-Sweep 100K+ · 4.7★ (138) wp.org #21 3 too low 19

Fixed Bottom Menu 4K+ · 5.0★ (11) thin reviews wp.org #11 ↑1 8 too high 20

Shipping Simulator for WooCommerce 6K+ · 5.0★ (40) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #23 2 too low 22

Simple Side Tab 10K+ · 4.8★ (22) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews wp.org #24 2 too low 23

WP ESIGNATURE RTL (Right to Left) 100+ · 0.0★ (0) thin reviews wp.org #9 ↑2 14 too high 24

CodingBunny Database Cleaner 200+ · 5.0★ (2) thin reviews wp.org #19 5 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.