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

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 “mapping”, we and wp.org disagree on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 12 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

Pronamic Domain Mapping shows at wp.org #4 but places #21 on merit, a gap of 17 places. Its 90+ 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

WP Ultimate CSV Importer – WordPress CSV, XML & Excel Import Export places #9 on merit, 4.4★ from 593 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 Product Feed PRO for WooCommerce by AdTribes – Product Feeds for WooCommerce 80K+ · 4.7★ (1071) wp.org #3 ↓1 2 too low 2 Multiple Domain Mapping on Single Site 6K+ · 4.6★ (48) wp.org #1 ↑4 1 too high 3 Domain Mapping System | Create Microsites with Multiple Alias Domains (multisite optional) 2K+ · 4.5★ (56) wp.org #2 ↓1 1 too high 4 Product Feed Manager for WooCommerce – CTX Feed – Support 220+ Shopping, AI & Social Channels 90K+ · 4.6★ (838) wp.org #5 ↓2 1 too low 5 Website Builder by SeedProd — Theme Builder, Landing Page Builder, Coming Soon Page, Maintenance Mode 600K+ · 4.9★ (4699) wp.org #13 ↓1 8 too low 6 Media Library Assistant 70K+ · 4.8★ (202) wp.org #11 ↑8 5 too low 7 Newsletter – Send awesome emails from WordPress 200K+ · 4.6★ (1205) wp.org #9 2 too low 8 Custom Query Blocks 700+ · 4.6★ (25) wp.org #6 2 too high 9 WP Ultimate CSV Importer – WordPress CSV, XML & Excel Import Export 20K+ · 4.4★ (593) wp.org #19 ↓5 10 too low 10 GSheetConnector – CF7 Google Sheets Connector & Save CF7 Entries to Database 40K+ · 4.4★ (129) wp.org #10 ↓2 11 PixelYourSite – Your smart PIXEL (TAG) & API Manager 400K+ · 4.3★ (281) wp.org #18 ↓5 7 too low 12 WP Import Export Lite 40K+ · 4.0★ (113) wp.org #17 5 too low 13 The SEO Framework – Fast, Automated, Effortless. 200K+ · 4.9★ (380) wp.org #23 10 too low 14 Nginx Helper 200K+ · 4.4★ (31) wp.org #12 ↓2 2 too high 15 Product Feed Manager for WooCommerce – RexFeed – Sell on 200+ Shopping Channels 10K+ · 4.8★ (256) wp.org #20 5 too low 16 Domain For Sale – Landing Page Per Domain, Domain Mapping, Offers & Listings 200+ · 5.0★ (6) wp.org #7 9 too high 17 GEO my WP 3K+ · 4.6★ (139) wp.org #21 ↑1 4 too low 18 Product Import Export for WooCommerce – CSV Product Importer & Exporter 80K+ · 4.6★ (413) wp.org #22 ↑1 4 too low 19 WordPress Importer 2M+ · 3.1★ (327) wp.org #14 ↓3 5 too high 20 Pods Gravity Forms Add-On 1K+ · 5.0★ (7) wp.org #16 ↓1 4 too high 21 Pronamic Domain Mapping 90+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #4 17 too high 22 Mapping of image posts 10+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #8 ↑1 14 too high 23 Advance Image Mapping 20+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #24 ↓3 1 too low 24 Dark Mode for Elementor – Global colors mapping 50+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #15 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.