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

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 “mitigation”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 10 of the top 20.

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 the install base is organic or host-pushed, and its risk of being pulled.

Ranked above its merit

CHIP for Fluent Forms shows at wp.org #9 but places #19 on merit, a gap of 10 places. Its 100+ 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

The GDPR Framework By Data443 places #7 on merit, 4.8★ from 65 reviews, but shows at wp.org #12. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Limit Login Attempts Security – Login Security, 2FA, Firewall, Brute Force Prevention 1M+ · 4.8★ (1489) wp.org #1 2 Sucuri Security – Auditing, Malware Scanner and Security Hardening 600K+ · 4.2★ (386) wp.org #2 3 Cloudflare 200K+ · 3.5★ (181) wp.org #3 4 Headers Security Advanced & HSTS WP 90K+ · 4.9★ (79) wp.org #6 ↓2 2 too low 5 Inline Related Posts 100K+ · 4.3★ (77) wp.org #7 2 too low 6 Tracking Code Manager 90K+ · 4.1★ (58) wp.org #8 2 too low 7 The GDPR Framework By Data443 10K+ · 4.8★ (65) wp.org #12 ↓3 5 too low 8 bunny.net – WordPress CDN Plugin 10K+ · 3.1★ (22) wp.org #5 ↑1 3 too high 9 Apocalypse Meow 300+ · 5.0★ (23) wp.org #13 4 too low 10 CHIP for WooCommerce 4K+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #4 ↑1 6 too high 11 App for Cloudflare® 1K+ · 4.7★ (14) wp.org #17 ↓1 6 too low 12 Checkout Shield for WooCommerce – Stop Fake Orders, Spam Bots & Card Testing 400+ · 5.0★ (5) wp.org #11 ↑4 1 too high 13 Evergreen Countdown Timer 2K+ · 3.6★ (14) wp.org #16 ↓2 3 too low 14 S Send From 500+ · 5.0★ (8) wp.org #21 ↓1 7 too low 15 Vulnity Security 40+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #10 ↑1 5 too high 16 Bangladeshi Payments Mobile – MFS Gateway, QR Code, Advance COD Protection, Thermal POS Invoicing & WhatsApp Suite 1K+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #15 1 too high 17 Captcha Ajax 100+ · 4.7★ (3) wp.org #18 ↓1 1 too low 18 SiaraShield 10+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #23 ↑1 5 too low 19 CHIP for Fluent Forms 100+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #9 ↑1 10 too high 20 Gravity Forms: GDPR Framework Add-On 200+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #19 ↓1 1 too high 21 PrimePlaced – Advanced password protection 20+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #24 ↓3 3 too low 22 WP Guardian – Security Hardening Checklist & Lightweight Firewall 100+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #14 ↓2 8 too high 23 Anonympins Bot Mitigation with Proof-of-Work — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #20 3 too high 24 Transaction Validation – Fraud Mitigation — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #22 ↓3 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.