Plugin Pulse Beta
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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “not replied”

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 “not replied”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 6 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

Live Chat Plugin for Elementor – LiveChat shows at wp.org #13 but places #20 on merit, a gap of 7 places. Its 40+ installs carry it up the search order; its 3.0★ average from 2 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

JS Help Desk – AI-Powered Support & Ticketing System places #7 on merit, 3.7★ from 74 reviews, but shows at wp.org #12. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 SlimStat Analytics – Real-Time Stats, Heatmaps & Ecommerce 70K+ · 4.8★ (816) wp.org #1 ↑1 2 wpDataTables – WordPress Data Table, Dynamic Tables & Table Charts Plugin 60K+ · 4.5★ (449) wp.org #2 ↓1 3 Notification – Custom Notifications and Alerts for WordPress 10K+ · 4.6★ (124) wp.org #4 1 too low 4 Rublon Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) 400+ · 4.2★ (88) wp.org #3 1 too high 5 Groundhogg — CRM, Newsletters, and Marketing Automation 2K+ · 4.8★ (150) wp.org #5 6 EU/UK VAT Validation Manager for WooCommerce 7K+ · 4.8★ (39) wp.org #6 ↓1 7 JS Help Desk – AI-Powered Support & Ticketing System 7K+ · 3.7★ (74) wp.org #12 ↓1 5 too low 8 Subscribe To Comments Checkbox 100+ · 4.9★ (9) wp.org #8 ↓2 9 Coupon Creator 1K+ · 4.3★ (37) wp.org #10 ↓1 1 too low 10 Post Kinds 100+ · 4.3★ (6) wp.org #9 ↓1 1 too high 11 Dynamic Pricing and Discount Rules for WooCommerce 600+ · 4.0★ (13) wp.org #7 4 too high 12 FluentComments – AJAX Comments, Anti-Spam & Comment Email Notifications 700+ · 4.3★ (6) wp.org #11 ↓1 1 too high 13 Guest Support – Customer Support Ticket System Without Login 40+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #14 ↓1 1 too low 14 Wappbiz — · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #16 ↓1 2 too low 15 Supportivo Ticketing & Helpdesk Portal — · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #19 ↓2 4 too low 16 Chat Quote for WooCommerce – Instant Chat & Order Quote Widget 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #17 1 too low 17 Email Templates for Contact Form 7 — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #18 ↓2 1 too low 18 B bbPress Notification 200+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #15 ↓1 3 too high 19 aGo Contact — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #22 ↓2 3 too low 20 Live Chat Plugin for Elementor – LiveChat 40+ · 3.0★ (2) wp.org #13 ↓1 7 too high 21 Tikkit – Simple Support Tickets & Helpdesk — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #23 ↓2 2 too low 22 S Simple Support Tickets — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #24 ↓2 2 too low 23 FillKite – Contact Form Builder with Conditional Logic & Lead Inbox — · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #20 ↓2 3 too high 24 WALoops Order Notifications, COD Verification & Abandoned Cart for WooCommerce — · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #21 ↓2 3 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.