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

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 “methods”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 14 of the top 20. 7 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.

E

Ranked above its merit

ESTO payment methods shows at wp.org #6 but places #21 on merit, a gap of 15 places. Its 600+ 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 2FA – Two-factor authentication for WordPress places #6 on merit, 4.7★ from 184 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 WC Hide Shipping Methods 20K+ · 4.2★ (44) wp.org #1 ↑1 2 WooCommerce Stripe Payment Gateway 700K+ · 3.1★ (237) wp.org #2 ↑1 3 Payment Plugins for Stripe WooCommerce 100K+ · 4.8★ (303) wp.org #7 4 too low 4 Colissimo shipping methods for WooCommerce 10K+ · 3.7★ (28) wp.org #3 ↓2 1 too high 5 MC4WP: Mailchimp for WordPress 1M+ · 4.8★ (1497) wp.org #16 11 too low 6 WP 2FA – Two-factor authentication for WordPress 100K+ · 4.7★ (184) wp.org #19 ↑1 13 too low 7 Custom Shipping Methods for WooCommerce – Create Weight based Shipping, Conditional Shipping, Table Rate Shipping and much more 3K+ · 4.8★ (18) wp.org #9 2 too low 8 Remove XML-RPC Methods 1K+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #5 ↑1 3 too high 9 D Disable Payment Methods based on cart conditions for WooCommerce 1K+ · 4.7★ (14) wp.org #15 6 too low 10 Hide Shipping Method For WooCommerce 20K+ · 4.0★ (25) wp.org #10 11 E Estonian Shipping Methods for WooCommerce 1K+ · 3.9★ (7) wp.org #8 3 too high 12 Flat Rate Shipping Method for WooCommerce 5K+ · 4.2★ (76) wp.org #20 ↓1 8 too low 13 PiWeb Disable payment method / Partial payment for WooCommerce 4K+ · 5.0★ (38) wp.org #22 ↓1 9 too low 14 Payment Methods by Product & Country for WooCommerce 5K+ · 4.2★ (18) wp.org #14 15 WooCommerce PayPal Payments 800K+ · 2.9★ (583) wp.org #21 6 too low 16 Shipping Method Display Style for WooCommerce 2K+ · 4.6★ (21) wp.org #23 7 too low 17 Pay. Payment Methods for WooCommerce 3K+ · 3.7★ (3) wp.org #4 13 too high 18 ELEX Hide WooCommerce Shipping Methods 1K+ · 3.1★ (8) wp.org #13 5 too high 19 Conditional Payment Methods for WooCommerce 1K+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #11 8 too high 20 Accepted Payment Methods 100+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #12 8 too high 21 E ESTO payment methods 600+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #6 ↓1 15 too high 22 Dintero Checkout for WooCommerce Payment Methods 600+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #18 4 too high 23 Free shipping + Flat rate and hide other methods for WooCommerce 200+ · 3.7★ (3) wp.org #24 ↓2 1 too low 24 Restrict Payment Methods For WooCommerce 100+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #17 7 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.