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

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 “lostpassword”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 11 of the top 20. 5 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

TomS reCAPTCHA shows at wp.org #7 but places #15 on merit, a gap of 8 places. Its 500+ 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

AJAX Login and Registration modal popup + inline form places #5 on merit, 4.7★ from 120 reviews, but shows at wp.org #11. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Theme My Login 50K+ · 3.7★ (460) wp.org #1 2 WPS Hide Login 2M+ · 4.8★ (2111) wp.org #6 4 too low 3 C Custom Login URL 1K+ · 3.8★ (18) wp.org #2 1 too high 4 WPEPP – Essential Security, Password Protect & Login Page Customizer 3K+ · 4.1★ (19) wp.org #4 5 AJAX Login and Registration modal popup + inline form 3K+ · 4.7★ (120) wp.org #11 6 too low 6 bbPress Login Register Links On Forum Topic Pages 600+ · 4.1★ (8) wp.org #3 3 too high 7 Atlant Security 700+ · 5.0★ (8) wp.org #14 7 too low 8 NETSENSAI Shield 1K+ · 5.0★ (5) wp.org #10 2 too low 9 StranoWeb Ajax Login 100+ · 4.7★ (25) wp.org #24 15 too low 10 W WP Social AutoConnect 400+ · 4.4★ (13) wp.org #21 11 too low 11 Multibyte CAPTCHA login and Mail only register 40+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #5 6 too high 12 U Ultimate Member – reCAPTCHA 20K+ · 3.7★ (11) wp.org #13 1 too low 13 TSO Login Organizer — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #8 5 too high 14 drCaptcha 20+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #9 5 too high 15 TomS reCAPTCHA 500+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #7 8 too high 16 SUC – same user credentials 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #12 4 too high 17 Hide WP Admin Login 500+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #16 1 too high 18 WP Force Password 100+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #17 1 too high 19 i4a Single Sign-On 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #19 20 TomS Vaptcha — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #20 21 T TapHuman – Gamified CAPTCHA & Bot Protection — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #22 1 too low 22 Integration with WorkOS 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #23 1 too low 23 GWP-Captcha 100+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #15 8 too high 24 PilotPress 900+ · 2.2★ (5) wp.org #18 6 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.