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

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 “locate”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 4 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

YITH WooCommerce Product Slider Carousel shows at wp.org #14 but places #21 on merit, a gap of 7 places. Its 4K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 3.2★ average from 20 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Reviews and Rating – Google Reviews places #12 on merit, 4.9★ from 184 reviews, but shows at wp.org #23. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Contact Form 7 10M+ · 4.0★ (2186) wp.org #1 2 WP Maps – Google Maps, OpenStreetMap, Mapbox, Store Locator with Search, Filters & Listings 60K+ · 4.3★ (122) wp.org #2 3 WP Store Locator 40K+ · 4.8★ (312) wp.org #4 1 too low 4 FileBird – WordPress Media Library Folders & File Manager 200K+ · 4.7★ (1125) wp.org #5 1 too low 5 Redux Framework 900K+ · 4.4★ (273) wp.org #3 2 too high 6 Shortcoder — Create Shortcodes for Anything 100K+ · 4.9★ (227) wp.org #7 1 too low 7 We’re Open! 5K+ · 5.0★ (45) wp.org #6 1 too high 8 Advanced Woo Search – Product Search for WooCommerce 60K+ · 4.8★ (248) wp.org #11 3 too low 9 Quantity Plus Minus Button for WooCommerce 10K+ · 4.4★ (30) wp.org #10 1 too low 10 Code Profiler – WordPress Performance Profiling and Debugging Made Easy 8K+ · 4.3★ (36) wp.org #9 1 too high 11 Admin Menu Search 3K+ · 4.9★ (14) wp.org #8 3 too high 12 Reviews and Rating – Google Reviews 20K+ · 4.9★ (184) wp.org #23 11 too low 13 GF Mollie by Indigo 900+ · 4.9★ (21) wp.org #12 1 too high 14 Find My Blocks – Locate blocks on your site 4K+ · 4.8★ (51) wp.org #16 2 too low 15 Custom WP Store Locator 300+ · 4.6★ (14) wp.org #13 2 too high 16 LocateAndFilter 200+ · 5.0★ (12) wp.org #17 1 too low 17 Block Manager 4K+ · 4.9★ (13) wp.org #18 1 too low 18 BA Book Everything 10K+ · 4.2★ (20) wp.org #21 3 too low 19 Post Type Transfer 2K+ · 5.0★ (7) wp.org #19 20 Query Loop Post Selector 600+ · 5.0★ (5) wp.org #15 5 too high 21 YITH WooCommerce Product Slider Carousel 4K+ · 3.2★ (20) wp.org #14 7 too high 22 Table Of Contents Block 10K+ · 4.3★ (7) wp.org #20 2 too high 23 DesignSetGo 8K+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #22 1 too high 24 bpost-shipping-platform 500+ · 5.0★ (1) 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.