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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “no update”

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 “no update”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 12 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

Auto Update Post Date shows at wp.org #8 but places #23 on merit, a gap of 15 places. Its 2K+ 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

Modular DS: Monitor, update, and backup multiple websites places #11 on merit, 5.0★ from 133 reviews, but shows at wp.org #21. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Easy Updates Manager 300K+ · 4.8★ (726) wp.org #1 2 Wordfence Security – Firewall, Malware Scan, and Login Security 5M+ · 4.7★ (5039) wp.org #2 3 Go Live Update Urls 90K+ · 4.5★ (59) wp.org #3 4 Companion Auto Update 40K+ · 4.8★ (105) wp.org #5 1 too low 5 Yoast SEO – Advanced SEO with real-time guidance and built-in AI 10M+ · 4.8★ (27821) wp.org #10 5 too low 6 UpdraftPlus: WP Backup & Migration Plugin 4M+ · 4.8★ (8706) wp.org #9 3 too low 7 WP STAGING – Backups & Restore, Migration & Clone Plugin – Cloud Backups, Scheduled Backups 100K+ · 4.8★ (2470) wp.org #12 ↑1 5 too low 8 Disable WordPress Update Notifications and auto-update Email Notifications 10K+ · 4.2★ (19) wp.org #4 4 too high 9 Disable All WordPress Updates 20K+ · 4.8★ (69) wp.org #11 2 too low 10 U Update Control 4K+ · 4.4★ (17) wp.org #6 4 too high 11 Modular DS: Monitor, update, and backup multiple websites 40K+ · 5.0★ (133) wp.org #21 ↓1 10 too low 12 WooCommerce 7M+ · 4.5★ (4833) wp.org #16 ↓1 4 too low 13 Elementor Website Builder – more than just a page builder 10M+ · 4.5★ (7323) wp.org #22 ↓1 9 too low 14 Content Update Scheduler 2K+ · 4.3★ (12) wp.org #7 7 too high 15 Better Search Replace 1M+ · 4.3★ (546) wp.org #23 ↓1 8 too low 16 Search & Replace Everything – Quick and Easy Way to Find and Replace Text, Links 20K+ · 4.7★ (26) wp.org #17 1 too low 17 WP Updates Notifier 20K+ · 4.2★ (35) wp.org #18 1 too low 18 Disable Updates – Updates Manager, Disable Automatic Updates, Disable All Updates 9K+ · 4.5★ (24) wp.org #13 ↓1 5 too high 19 Bulk Price Update for Woocommerce 2K+ · 4.0★ (16) wp.org #14 5 too high 20 Block Plugin Update 5K+ · 4.4★ (19) wp.org #19 1 too high 21 Force Update Translations 1K+ · 4.6★ (10) wp.org #15 ↑1 6 too high 22 No Shipping Message for WooCommerce 3K+ · 5.0★ (19) wp.org #24 ↓1 2 too low 23 Auto Update Post Date 2K+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #8 15 too high 24 Disable Updates for WordPress Core, Plugins and Themes 9K+ · 4.8★ (4) wp.org #20 ↓2 4 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.