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

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 “mailbox”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 12 of the top 20. 6 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

News Kit Addons For Elementor shows at wp.org #12 but places #20 on merit, a gap of 8 places. Its 3K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 3.6★ average from 5 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Groundhogg — CRM, Newsletters, and Marketing Automation places #6 on merit, 4.8★ from 150 reviews, but shows at wp.org #20. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 WPO365 | MICROSOFT 365 GRAPH MAILER 10K+ · 5.0★ (40) wp.org #1 ↑1 2 WPO365 | SEAMLESS WORDPRESS + MICROSOFT INTEGRATION (WPO365 | LOGIN) 10K+ · 4.9★ (154) wp.org #4 ↑2 2 too low 3 Colissimo shipping methods for WooCommerce 10K+ · 3.7★ (28) wp.org #3 ↓2 4 Easy WP SMTP – WordPress SMTP and Email Logs: Gmail SMTP, Office 365, Outlook, Custom SMTP, and more 500K+ · 4.6★ (709) wp.org #15 11 too low 5 MyParcel 8K+ · 3.9★ (48) wp.org #6 ↓2 1 too low 6 Groundhogg — CRM, Newsletters, and Marketing Automation 2K+ · 4.8★ (150) wp.org #20 14 too low 7 Support Genix – Helpdesk, AI Chatbot, Knowledge Base & Customer Support Ticketing System 3K+ · 4.5★ (10) wp.org #9 ↑1 2 too low 8 Bring Fraktguiden for WooCommerce 400+ · 4.0★ (19) wp.org #13 ↓2 5 too low 9 MBE eShip 1K+ · 4.0★ (3) wp.org #2 ↑1 7 too high 10 PostNL for WooCommerce 4K+ · 2.5★ (41) wp.org #7 ↑1 3 too high 11 AntiSpam for Contact Form 7 10K+ · 4.2★ (13) wp.org #10 ↓1 1 too high 12 Interac e-Transfer / Email Money Transfer (EMT) Gateway for WooCommerce 300+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #5 7 too high 13 QuickEmailVerification 200+ · 5.0★ (5) wp.org #8 ↓1 5 too high 14 DeBounce Email Validator 300+ · 3.9★ (16) wp.org #21 ↓3 7 too low 15 MailerPress – Email Marketing, Newsletter, Email Automation & WooCommerce Emails 1K+ · 5.0★ (17) wp.org #24 9 too low 16 PressedMail – Email Client, Inbox & Webmail 100+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #11 5 too high 17 Vachr Short-Term Rental Reservations 30+ · 4.3★ (6) wp.org #18 1 too low 18 Bit CRM: Sales CRM Manage Lead, Contact, Deal, Invoice, Client Portal & Collect Payment 300+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #17 ↓1 1 too high 19 Byteplant Email Validator 90+ · 3.8★ (9) wp.org #22 ↓5 3 too low 20 News Kit Addons For Elementor 3K+ · 3.6★ (5) wp.org #12 ↑2 8 too high 21 InternetWerk GmbH SMTP Mail 40+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #16 ↓3 5 too high 22 Posten Bring Checkout 200+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #14 ↓2 8 too high 23 Email Checker for Contact Form 7 90+ · 3.0★ (2) wp.org #23 ↓4 24 Mailster Gmail Integration 1K+ · 1.0★ (1) 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.