wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “modified time”

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 “modified time”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 14 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

Lock Last Modified Date shows at wp.org #9 but places #23 on merit, a gap of 14 places. Its 80+ installs carry it up the search order; its 4.0★ average from 1 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Social Preview and Open Graph Tags places #11 on merit, 4.6★ from 122 reviews, but shows at wp.org #22. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin signals wp.org

WP Last Modified Info 40K+ · 4.9★ (855) wp.org #1 2

Last Modified Timestamp 6K+ · 5.0★ (28) wp.org #2 3

UpdraftPlus: WP Backup & Migration Plugin 4M+ · 4.8★ (8706) wp.org #5 ↓1 2 too low 4

WP Date and Time Shortcode 10K+ · 4.9★ (31) wp.org #3 1 too high 5

Backup and Staging by WP Time Capsule 10K+ · 4.0★ (128) wp.org #4 ↑1 1 too high 6

WP Super Cache 1M+ · 4.3★ (1346) wp.org #10 ↑4 4 too low 7

Better Search Replace 1M+ · 4.3★ (546) wp.org #12 5 too low 8

StatCounter – Real Time Visitor Stats, Session Replay & Heatmaps 70K+ · 4.2★ (56) wp.org #11 3 too low 9

Enable Media Replace 600K+ · 4.4★ (302) wp.org #17 ↓7 8 too low 10

Social Preview and Open Graph Tags 50K+ · 4.6★ (122) wp.org #22 11 too low 12

GTM4WP – A Google Tag Manager (GTM) plugin for WordPress 700K+ · 4.5★ (155) wp.org #18 ↑2 6 too low 13

Live Chat by Formilla – Real-time Chat & Chatbots Plugin 2K+ · 4.8★ (116) wp.org #23 10 too low 14

NinjaFirewall (WP Edition) – Advanced Security Plugin and Firewall 100K+ · 4.9★ (220) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #19 ↑3 5 too low 15

Meks Time Ago 10K+ · 4.3★ (9) thin reviews wp.org #7 8 too high 16

Time Clock – A WordPress Employee & Volunteer Time Clock Plugin 500+ · 4.9★ (8) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews wp.org #6 10 too high 17

Change Last Modified Date 3K+ · 4.3★ (12) thin reviews wp.org #8 9 too high 18

One Click Demo Import 1M+ · 4.3★ (79) host-installed base wp.org #21 ↑3 3 too low 19

Proxy Cache Purge 50K+ · 4.4★ (26) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #20 ↑3 1 too low 20

Customization for WP SEO 2K+ · 5.0★ (3) thin reviews wp.org #16 4 too high 21

Notification Master – Real-Time WordPress Notifications With Email, SMS, Webhooks & More 1K+ · 5.0★ (4) thin reviews wp.org #24 3 too low 22

Aruba HiSpeed Cache 100K+ · 3.0★ (10) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews wp.org #13 ↑4 9 too high 23

Lock Last Modified Date 80+ · 4.0★ (1) thin reviews wp.org #9 14 too high 24

JSM Accurate Modified Time for SEO (Yoast SEO, Rank Math SEO, All in One SEO, etc.) 40+ · 5.0★ (1) thin reviews wp.org #15 9 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.