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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “night mode”

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 “night mode”, we and wp.org disagree on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 9 of the top 20. 1 plugin is 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

AboveWP Admin Dark Mode shows at wp.org #8 but places #20 on merit, a gap of 12 places. Its 90+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 2 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

CMP – Coming Soon & Maintenance Plugin by NiteoThemes places #6 on merit, 4.7★ from 326 reviews, but shows at wp.org #18. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Dark Mode – Improve Accessibility with AI Powered Dark Theme 20K+ · 4.5★ (391) wp.org #2 ↓1 1 too low 2 Darkify – Dark Mode & Night Mode for Website & Admin (Dark Theme Included) 1K+ · 4.7★ (27) wp.org #1 ↑2 1 too high 3 Dark Mode for WP Dashboard 3K+ · 4.8★ (34) wp.org #3 ↓1 4 Darklup – Enhanced WordPress Dark Mode, Dark Theme, Night Mode & Accessibility Plugin 1K+ · 4.5★ (44) wp.org #4 5 Dark Mode Toggle 2K+ · 4.6★ (19) wp.org #5 6 CMP – Coming Soon & Maintenance Plugin by NiteoThemes 200K+ · 4.7★ (326) wp.org #18 ↑2 12 too low 7 Accessibility Widget by OneTap – Easy One-Click Accessibility Toolbar 60K+ · 4.9★ (80) wp.org #15 ↓1 8 too low 8 DarkLooks – Dark Mode Switcher For WordPress 800+ · 4.8★ (16) wp.org #7 1 too high 9 Code Block Pro – Beautiful Syntax Highlighting 10K+ · 4.8★ (50) wp.org #16 ↓1 7 too low 10 Markdown Editor (Formerly Dark Mode) 1K+ · 3.3★ (86) wp.org #10 11 Easy Booking – WooCommerce Booking & Reservation Plugin 4K+ · 4.7★ (63) wp.org #13 ↓1 2 too low 12 DarkMySite – Advanced Dark Mode Plugin for WordPress 900+ · 4.7★ (14) wp.org #11 1 too high 13 Availability Datepicker – Booking Calendar for Contact Form 7 – Input WP 10K+ · 4.1★ (42) wp.org #20 ↓2 7 too low 14 WP Hotelier 2K+ · 4.7★ (23) wp.org #21 ↓2 7 too low 15 BA Book Everything 10K+ · 4.2★ (20) wp.org #17 2 too low 16 Dark Reader – Beautiful Dark Mode for any Website 200+ · 5.0★ (5) wp.org #9 7 too high 17 Night Mode 30+ · 3.4★ (5) wp.org #6 11 too high 18 Events Slider, Events Carousel, Events Grid, Events Timeline and Events Filter Bar for The Events Calendar – Eventful 400+ · 5.0★ (7) wp.org #19 ↓3 1 too low 19 ChatHelp – Click to Chat Button, Chat to Order for WooCommerce & Floating Chat Form 2K+ · 4.4★ (9) wp.org #22 ↓1 3 too low 20 AboveWP Admin Dark Mode 90+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #8 12 too high 21 DarkMeta Dark Mode — · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #23 ↓1 2 too low 22 Onyx Dark Mode Switcher 300+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #12 ↑1 10 too high 23 Mawu Dark Mode for the Admin Dashboard, Editor & Website 10+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #14 9 too high 24 Customize My Account for WooCommerce – Custom Tabs, Login, Registration, 2FA & Design 900+ · 3.4★ (5) wp.org #24 ↓1

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.