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

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

Price Matrix for WooCommerce shows at wp.org #2 but places #13 on merit, a gap of 11 places. Its 10+ 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

Easy Form Builder by WhiteStudio – Drag & Drop Form Builder places #9 on merit, 5.0★ from 70 reviews, but shows at wp.org #24. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Spam Protection | Maspik 30K+ · 4.7★ (87) wp.org #1 2 Admin and Site Enhancements (ASE) 200K+ · 5.0★ (423) wp.org #4 2 too low 3 FluentCRM – Email Newsletter, Automation, Email Marketing, Email Campaigns, Optins, Leads, and CRM Solution 80K+ · 4.8★ (250) wp.org #6 3 too low 4 Survey Maker by AYS 5K+ · 4.8★ (79) wp.org #5 1 too low 5 WooReer 1K+ · 4.1★ (24) wp.org #3 2 too high 6 PPOM – Product Addons & Custom Fields for WooCommerce 20K+ · 4.5★ (283) wp.org #9 ↑4 3 too low 7 M Multi Device Switcher 10K+ · 4.3★ (11) wp.org #7 8 Custom Shipping Methods for WooCommerce – Create Weight based Shipping, Conditional Shipping, Table Rate Shipping and much more 3K+ · 4.8★ (18) wp.org #12 ↓1 4 too low 9 Easy Form Builder by WhiteStudio – Drag & Drop Form Builder 1K+ · 5.0★ (70) wp.org #24 15 too low 10 C Custom Post Type Widgets 10K+ · 4.8★ (14) wp.org #13 ↓1 3 too low 11 Version Info – Server Health Monitor, PHP & MySQL Version Display, Environment Indicators 10K+ · 5.0★ (15) wp.org #17 6 too low 12 AnWP Football Leagues 700+ · 4.9★ (14) wp.org #19 ↑2 7 too low 13 Price Matrix for WooCommerce 10+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #2 11 too high 14 W WP Auto Updater 7K+ · 4.6★ (10) wp.org #14 15 Affilia – Affiliate Program 500+ · 4.7★ (14) wp.org #15 16 Secure MCP Server for Claude, ChatGPT, Gemini and other AI Agents 8K+ · 5.0★ (10) wp.org #23 ↑1 7 too low 17 SurveyJS: Drag & Drop Form Builder 500+ · 4.7★ (3) wp.org #8 9 too high 18 Distance Rate Shipping For WooCommerce 300+ · 3.3★ (8) wp.org #11 ↓1 7 too high 19 Change WooCommerce Product Author – Transfer Ownership of WooCommerce Products 200+ · 4.7★ (3) wp.org #20 ↓1 1 too low 20 SurveyX Builder – Survey, Poll, Quiz & Feedback Form 2K+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #21 ↑1 1 too low 21 Multisite Matrix — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #10 ↓1 11 too high 22 Blockenberg — 645 Advanced Gutenberg Blocks, 683 Templates and AI Agent for WordPress Block Editor 1K+ · 4.6★ (5) wp.org #18 ↑2 4 too high 23 E Editor Bridge 200+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #22 ↑1 1 too high 24 Spotler Mail+ Forms 300+ · 3.0★ (1) wp.org #16 8 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.