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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “minimal analytics”

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 “minimal analytics”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 11 of the top 20. 2 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

Analytics Head shows at wp.org #8 but places #20 on merit, a gap of 12 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

Post Views Counter places #7 on merit, 4.9★ from 1236 reviews, but shows at wp.org #16. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Burst Statistics – Simple WordPress Analytics (Google Analytics Alternative) 200K+ · 4.9★ (186) wp.org #1 2 Minimal Coming Soon – Coming Soon Page 100K+ · 4.3★ (282) wp.org #2 3 CAOS | Host Google Analytics Locally 10K+ · 4.9★ (128) wp.org #4 1 too low 4 Flying Analytics: Self-Host Google Analytics v4 with Speed Optimization 4K+ · 4.9★ (14) wp.org #3 1 too high 5 WP ULike – Like Buttons, Voting & Engagement Analytics 60K+ · 4.8★ (283) wp.org #9 ↓2 4 too low 6 BrikPanel: WooCommerce Dashboard & Analytics, Abandoned Cart Recovery, Order Export, Inventory Management & Bulk Editor 1K+ · 5.0★ (55) wp.org #5 ↑6 1 too high 7 Post Views Counter 100K+ · 4.9★ (1236) wp.org #16 ↑7 9 too low 8 BBQ Firewall – Fast & Powerful Firewall Security 100K+ · 4.9★ (160) wp.org #13 ↓1 5 too low 9 Tutor LMS – eLearning and online course solution 100K+ · 4.4★ (590) wp.org #15 ↓2 6 too low 10 Cart Abandonment Recovery for WooCommerce – Recover Lost Sales with Automated Emails 300K+ · 4.8★ (625) wp.org #12 ↑3 2 too low 11 VigIA – AI Visibility, Analytics & Control 2K+ · 5.0★ (19) wp.org #10 ↓1 1 too high 12 پارسی دیت – Parsi Date 100K+ · 4.6★ (130) wp.org #18 ↑4 6 too low 13 HubSpot All-In-One Marketing – Forms, Popups, Live Chat 200K+ · 4.3★ (207) wp.org #22 ↓6 9 too low 14 WPZOOM Social Feed Widget & Block 50K+ · 4.3★ (51) wp.org #17 3 too low 15 Pixel Tag Manager for WooCommerce – Google Analytics 4, Google Ads, and More Pixels 2K+ · 5.0★ (19) wp.org #14 1 too high 16 ATR Cookie Notice 1K+ · 5.0★ (13) wp.org #19 3 too low 17 Lightweight Google Analytics 400+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #6 ↓1 11 too high 18 Analytics Tracker 900+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #7 ↓1 11 too high 19 Bolt CTA Button – Floating Call Button for WordPress 2K+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #24 5 too low 20 Analytics Head 600+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #8 12 too high 21 0 Day Analytics 10+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #20 ↓2 1 too high 22 Integrate PostHog Web Analytics 300+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #11 ↓1 11 too high 23 Profound Agent Analytics 200+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #21 ↓1 2 too high 24 Kliken: Ads + Pixel for Meta 30K+ · 3.0★ (1) wp.org #23 1 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.