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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “net 30”

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 “net 30”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 13 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.

Ranked above its merit

Nexi Checkout shows at wp.org #5 but places #13 on merit, a gap of 8 places. Its 2K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 4.0★ average from 3 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

UserFeedback – Create Interactive Feedback Form, User Surveys, and Polls in Seconds places #9 on merit, 4.8★ from 309 reviews, but shows at wp.org #15. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Sender – Newsletter, SMS and Email Marketing Automation for WooCommerce 5K+ · 4.8★ (83) wp.org #1 2 Admin and Site Enhancements (ASE) 200K+ · 5.0★ (423) wp.org #4 2 too low 3 Secure Gateway for Authorize.net and WooCommerce by Pledged Plugins 10K+ · 4.9★ (34) wp.org #2 1 too high 4 BrikPanel: WooCommerce Dashboard & Analytics, Abandoned Cart Recovery, Order Export, Inventory Management & Bulk Editor 1K+ · 5.0★ (55) wp.org #3 1 too high 5 Fluent Forms – Customizable Contact Forms, Survey, Quiz, & Conversational Form Builder 800K+ · 4.8★ (807) wp.org #8 ↓1 3 too low 6 WPZOOM Social Feed Widget & Block 50K+ · 4.3★ (51) wp.org #6 7 404 to 301 – Redirect Manager, 301 Redirection, 404 Error Logs & 404 Monitoring 100K+ · 4.7★ (321) wp.org #12 5 too low 8 Survey Maker by AYS 5K+ · 4.8★ (79) wp.org #9 ↓1 1 too low 9 UserFeedback – Create Interactive Feedback Form, User Surveys, and Polls in Seconds 200K+ · 4.8★ (309) wp.org #15 ↓2 6 too low 10 GiveWP – Donation Plugin and Fundraising Platform 100K+ · 4.6★ (708) wp.org #10 11 Accept Authorize.NET Payments Using Contact Form 7 100+ · 5.0★ (8) wp.org #7 ↑2 4 too high 12 MJDD Sidrena Cijena 700+ · 5.0★ (8) wp.org #16 ↓1 4 too low 13 Nexi Checkout 2K+ · 4.0★ (3) wp.org #5 8 too high 14 Shelf Planner Inventory Management for WooCommerce 100+ · 4.7★ (16) wp.org #20 ↑2 6 too low 15 Angie – Agentic AI 100K+ · 3.3★ (20) wp.org #22 ↓5 7 too low 16 WebwinkelKeur: Webshop keurmerk & reviews for WordPress 4K+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #19 3 too low 17 Amazon Pay for WooCommerce 10K+ · 2.5★ (27) wp.org #24 7 too low 18 SERPed.net 200+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #11 7 too high 19 Paiement par Carte DAHABIA et Carte CIB for WooCommerce 80+ · 5.0★ (5) wp.org #23 4 too low 20 SEO'n'AI – Image Locator & Find Unused Images 100+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #17 ↓1 3 too high 21 Credit Key Payment Gateway 10+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #13 ↑7 8 too high 22 N Ni WooCommerce Sales Report By User Role 90+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #14 8 too high 23 N Ni Cost of Goods for WooCommerce 200+ · 3.5★ (4) wp.org #21 ↑2 2 too high 24 Bayarcash WooCommerce 700+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #18 ↑3 6 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.