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

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 “lines”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 14 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

Gravity Forms CLI Add-On shows at wp.org #10 but places #21 on merit, a gap of 11 places. Its 20K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 4.4★ average from 7 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Rich Showcase for Google Reviews places #9 on merit, 4.9★ from 1620 reviews, but shows at wp.org #19. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Floating Chat Widget: Contact Chat Icons, Telegram Chat, Line Messenger, WeChat, Email, SMS, Call Button – Chaty 300K+ · 5.0★ (1242) wp.org #1 2 WP Mail SMTP by WPForms – The Most Popular SMTP and Email Log Plugin 4M+ · 4.8★ (5204) wp.org #2 3 Orphans 50K+ · 5.0★ (164) wp.org #7 ↑1 4 too low 4 WP-Optimize – Cache, Compress images, Minify & Clean database to boost page speed & performance 1M+ · 4.8★ (2615) wp.org #8 ↓1 4 too low 5 WP-PageNavi 500K+ · 4.7★ (149) wp.org #6 1 too low 6 Albo Pretorio On line 800+ · 5.0★ (18) wp.org #4 2 too high 7 WPForms – AI Form Builder for WordPress – Contact Forms, Payment Forms, Survey Form, Quiz & More 5M+ · 4.8★ (14381) wp.org #13 ↓3 6 too low 8 WP Super Cache 1M+ · 4.3★ (1346) wp.org #11 ↓2 3 too low 9 Rich Showcase for Google Reviews 100K+ · 4.9★ (1620) wp.org #19 ↓2 10 too low 10 Disable Admin Notices – Hide Dashboard Notifications 100K+ · 4.7★ (367) wp.org #14 4 too low 11 Members – Membership & User Role Editor Plugin 300K+ · 4.9★ (1280) wp.org #18 7 too low 12 Chart Block – Visualize Data with Bar, Line, Pie Charts 1K+ · 4.8★ (10) wp.org #5 7 too high 13 Mobile Contact Line 1K+ · 5.0★ (5) wp.org #3 10 too high 14 Ninja Forms – Contact Form Builder with Calculators, Quizzes, Signatures & AI Form Builder 500K+ · 4.4★ (1395) wp.org #17 ↓1 3 too low 15 Yoast Duplicate Post 3M+ · 4.7★ (538) wp.org #9 ↑2 6 too high 16 Mail logging & Catcher 20K+ · 4.9★ (107) wp.org #16 ↑3 17 Simple History – Track, Log, and Audit WordPress Changes 300K+ · 4.9★ (491) wp.org #21 4 too low 18 Accessibility Widget by OneTap – Easy One-Click Accessibility Toolbar 60K+ · 4.9★ (79) wp.org #22 4 too low 19 Enable Media Replace 600K+ · 4.4★ (302) wp.org #23 ↑1 4 too low 20 YMC Filter 4K+ · 4.8★ (34) wp.org #20 21 Gravity Forms CLI Add-On 20K+ · 4.4★ (7) wp.org #10 ↑2 11 too high 22 Pay with LINE Pay 800+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #15 7 too high 23 Travel Map 1K+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #12 ↑1 11 too high 24 WooCommerce Payfast Gateway 30K+ · 3.0★ (7) 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.