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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “master password”

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 “master password”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 13 of the top 20. 4 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

Notification Master – Real-Time WordPress Notifications With Email, SMS, Webhooks & More shows at wp.org #4 but places #16 on merit, a gap of 12 places. Its 1K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 4 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Post SMTP – Complete Email Delivery and SMTP Solution with Email Logs, Alerts, Backup SMTP & Mobile App places #10 on merit, 4.7★ from 528 reviews, but shows at wp.org #18. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Password Protected 300K+ · 4.4★ (142) wp.org #1 ↑1 2 PPWP – Password Protect Pages 30K+ · 4.7★ (271) wp.org #2 ↓1 3 Quiz and Survey Master (QSM) – Quiz Maker & Survey Maker 40K+ · 4.7★ (1282) wp.org #3 4 Master Addons for Elementor – Elementor Addons, Widgets, Mega Menu Builder, Popup Builder, Widget Builder & Template Kits 30K+ · 4.5★ (212) wp.org #6 ↓2 2 too low 5 FooGallery Photo Gallery : Image, Video & Masonry Galleries 100K+ · 4.8★ (995) wp.org #7 2 too low 6 Two Factor 100K+ · 4.7★ (209) wp.org #11 5 too low 7 Redux Framework 900K+ · 4.4★ (273) wp.org #10 ↓2 3 too low 8 WP Umbrella: Security Backup Restore & Monitoring 90K+ · 4.8★ (81) wp.org #12 ↑2 4 too low 9 U Use Administrator Password 800+ · 5.0★ (9) wp.org #5 4 too high 10 Post SMTP – Complete Email Delivery and SMTP Solution with Email Logs, Alerts, Backup SMTP & Mobile App 300K+ · 4.7★ (528) wp.org #18 ↓7 8 too low 11 miniOrange OTP Login, Verification and SMS Notifications 5K+ · 4.7★ (439) wp.org #19 ↓2 8 too low 12 HTML5 Video Player – embed fast, responsive videos with ease 20K+ · 4.6★ (195) wp.org #17 ↑2 5 too low 13 wpDataTables – WordPress Data Table, Dynamic Tables & Table Charts Plugin 60K+ · 4.5★ (449) wp.org #20 ↓1 7 too low 14 Check & Log Email – Easy Email Testing & Mail logging 90K+ · 4.8★ (292) wp.org #14 15 Download Manager 100K+ · 4.1★ (1006) wp.org #23 ↓1 8 too low 16 Notification Master – Real-Time WordPress Notifications With Email, SMS, Webhooks & More 1K+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #4 ↑2 12 too high 17 Invisible Anti-Spam & CAPTCHA — reCAPTCHA Alternative for All Forms 4K+ · 4.8★ (50) wp.org #16 ↓1 1 too high 18 Master Post Password 50+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #9 9 too high 19 Button Block – Stylish buttons that get more clicks 5K+ · 5.0★ (7) wp.org #13 ↓3 6 too high 20 ArchiveMaster – Auto Archive and Export Old Orders for WooCommerce 100+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #8 12 too high 21 Atlant Security 700+ · 5.0★ (8) wp.org #24 3 too low 22 Loginfy – Custom Login Page Customizer 2K+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #21 1 too high 23 W wsecure lite 200+ · 3.5★ (4) wp.org #15 8 too high 24 Keys Master 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #22 ↓2 2 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.