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← Rankings

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

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 “linked”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 15 of the top 20. 3 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

Linked Open Profiles shows at wp.org #4 but places #21 on merit, a gap of 17 places. Its 60+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 1 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Nextend Social Login and Register places #4 on merit, 4.9★ from 446 reviews, but shows at wp.org #16. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 WPC Linked Variation for WooCommerce 3K+ · 4.7★ (15) wp.org #1 2 Lightbox with PhotoSwipe 20K+ · 4.9★ (115) wp.org #6 ↓1 4 too low 3 Robo Gallery – Photo & Image Slider 40K+ · 4.3★ (406) wp.org #8 5 too low 4 Nextend Social Login and Register 200K+ · 4.9★ (446) wp.org #16 12 too low 5 PublishPress Taxonomies – Tag, Category, and Taxonomy Manager – Autotagger Automatically Add Terms 40K+ · 4.6★ (195) wp.org #13 ↓1 8 too low 6 Linked Variations for WooCommerce – Link Separate Products by Attribute with Swatches, Quick View & Shortcodes 500+ · 4.2★ (5) wp.org #2 ↑1 4 too high 7 Simple Sitemap – Responsive HTML Sitemap for WordPress 60K+ · 3.9★ (72) wp.org #10 ↓2 3 too low 8 Export media with selected content (by DKZR) 40K+ · 4.5★ (93) wp.org #14 ↓1 6 too low 9 Easy Google Maps by Supsystic – Custom Markers, Clustering & Map Themes 20K+ · 4.6★ (251) wp.org #21 12 too low 10 Manual Related Posts 1K+ · 5.0★ (23) wp.org #11 1 too low 11 Linked Variation for WooCommerce 300+ · 4.6★ (10) wp.org #9 2 too high 12 WPC Product Bundles for WooCommerce 30K+ · 4.4★ (220) wp.org #18 6 too low 13 Google for WooCommerce 800K+ · 2.7★ (268) wp.org #7 ↓1 6 too high 14 MKL Product Configurator for WooCommerce – 2D & 3D Live Preview 2K+ · 4.8★ (42) wp.org #17 ↑3 3 too low 15 Kadence Starter Templates — Predesigned Website Templates 200K+ · 4.3★ (19) wp.org #12 ↓2 3 too high 16 WPC Smart Linked Products – Upsells & Cross-sells for WooCommerce 700+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #3 ↓1 13 too high 17 WPC Smart Quick View for WooCommerce 80K+ · 4.9★ (31) wp.org #19 ↓3 2 too low 18 Lightbox Images for Divi Enhanced 4K+ · 5.0★ (15) wp.org #22 ↓1 4 too low 19 Hash Link Scroll Offset 1K+ · 5.0★ (14) wp.org #24 5 too low 20 Force Sell for WooCommerce 600+ · 5.0★ (17) wp.org #20 21 Linked Open Profiles 60+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #4 17 too high 22 Clever Linked Terms 10+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #5 ↑2 17 too high 23 WPC Product Videos for WooCommerce 3K+ · 4.0★ (5) wp.org #23 24 Tranzly™ – AI Translation & Multilingual 7K+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #15 ↓1 9 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.