Plugin Pulse Beta
← Rankings

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

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 “moderator”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 11 of the top 20. 3 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

WP Comment Notification shows at wp.org #7 but places #20 on merit, a gap of 13 places. Its 400+ 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

Youzify – BuddyPress Community, User Profile, Social Network & Membership Plugin for WordPress places #8 on merit, 4.8★ from 194 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 Akismet Anti-spam: Spam Protection 5M+ · 4.7★ (1187) wp.org #1 2 bbPress 100K+ · 3.9★ (343) wp.org #2 3 Manage Notification E-mails 100K+ · 4.8★ (56) wp.org #3 4 Asgaros Forum 10K+ · 4.7★ (210) wp.org #4 ↑2 5 GiveWP – Donation Plugin and Fundraising Platform 100K+ · 4.6★ (708) wp.org #5 ↓1 6 Gwolle Guestbook 20K+ · 4.8★ (113) wp.org #10 ↓3 4 too low 7 bbPress Notify (No-Spam) 2K+ · 4.8★ (40) wp.org #8 ↑1 1 too low 8 Youzify – BuddyPress Community, User Profile, Social Network & Membership Plugin for WordPress 5K+ · 4.8★ (194) wp.org #19 ↑1 11 too low 9 Zeno Report Comments 200+ · 5.0★ (8) wp.org #6 ↑2 3 too high 10 Forumax – AI Powered Advanced Community Forum Plugin 500+ · 5.0★ (18) wp.org #13 ↑2 3 too low 11 Wise Chat 4K+ · 4.4★ (105) wp.org #22 ↑1 11 too low 12 FluentCommunity – Ultra-Fast High-Performance Social Network, Community, LMS & Online Courses 8K+ · 4.8★ (96) wp.org #17 ↑1 5 too low 13 Block, Suspend, Report for BuddyPress 500+ · 4.6★ (18) wp.org #12 ↑1 1 too high 14 MediaPress 3K+ · 4.7★ (33) wp.org #23 ↑1 9 too low 15 Group chat for WordPress – Minnit Chat 500+ · 4.1★ (8) wp.org #9 ↑3 6 too high 16 Virtual Classroom & Video Conferencing – BigBlueButton 400+ · 4.6★ (10) wp.org #21 ↑1 5 too low 17 B BP Group Documents 600+ · 5.0★ (15) wp.org #24 7 too low 18 Turnkey bbPress by WeaverTheme 300+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #11 ↑1 7 too high 19 Chatroll Live Chat 200+ · 4.0★ (5) wp.org #18 ↑1 1 too high 20 WP Comment Notification 400+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #7 ↑2 13 too high 21 S Safe Report Comments 100+ · 3.0★ (7) wp.org #20 ↑1 1 too high 22 Comment Moderation Role by WPBeginner 200+ · 3.7★ (3) wp.org #14 8 too high 23 B bbP Auto Block Spammers 50+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #15 ↑1 8 too high 24 forumManager for bbPress 100+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #16 ↑1 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.