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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “novel”

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 “novel”, we and wp.org disagree on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 14 of the top 20. 4 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

Identityplus shows at wp.org #12 but places #20 on merit, a gap of 8 places. Its 10+ installs carry it up the search order; its 0.0★ average from 0 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Floating Social Share Icons and Social Share buttons – Next Previous Post Links – FL 200+ · 4.7★ (73) wp.org #3 ↑2 2 too low 2 UpsellWP – Upsell and Related Products Offers for WooCommerce 5K+ · 4.9★ (149) wp.org #5 ↓1 3 too low 3 Bookvault 800+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #1 2 too high 4 AI Search for WooCommerce — Semantic & Live Search 90+ · 5.0★ (6) wp.org #6 2 too low 5 Floating Buttons for WooCommerce 10+ · 5.0★ (7) wp.org #8 3 too low 6 FICTBASE 40+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #4 ↓1 2 too high 7 Init Reading Position – Remember, Return, Continue 80+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #2 5 too high 8 VirusWeather Covid-19 Coronavirus 30+ · 4.9★ (8) wp.org #20 12 too low 9 Birttu 10+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #18 9 too low 10 Ruby Markup Converter — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #9 1 too high 11 Coronavirus Spread Prediction Tools Free Version 10+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #15 4 too low 12 SKY Blocks — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #10 2 too high 13 BookPress – PDF eBook Maker 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #7 6 too high 14 MugenCodex Chapter Coins Paywall — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #11 3 too high 15 Corona Update 10+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #19 4 too low 16 P PenBinder — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #13 ↓1 3 too high 17 E Edebiyat Yarışmaları Widget — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #14 ↓1 3 too high 18 WP COVID-19 DATA 10+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #23 5 too low 19 Animata — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #16 3 too high 20 Identityplus 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #12 ↑2 8 too high 21 4 4cgandhi 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #17 4 too high 22 SolverGuard Security Shield — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #22 23 Corona Meter India 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #24 1 too low 24 Covid-19 Live Tracker 10+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #21 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.