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

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 “obfuscation”, we and wp.org disagree on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 13 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

Email No Bot – Prevent bots from detecting emails shows at wp.org #9 but places #18 on merit, a gap of 9 places. Its 200+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 1 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Ebook Store places #10 on merit, 4.4★ from 60 reviews, but shows at wp.org #19. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Admin and Site Enhancements (ASE) 200K+ · 5.0★ (423) wp.org #2 1 too low 2 NinjaFirewall (WP Edition) – Advanced Security Plugin and Firewall 100K+ · 4.9★ (220) wp.org #3 1 too low 3 WP Coder – Insert & Manage Code Snippets 10K+ · 4.9★ (32) wp.org #4 ↑1 1 too low 4 Email Address Obfuscation 2K+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #1 3 too high 5 Vigilant – 100% Free Security Suite: Firewall, 2FA, Login, Headers, Scanner… 3K+ · 5.0★ (24) wp.org #5 ↓1 6 Meta Generator and Version Info Remover 10K+ · 5.0★ (28) wp.org #10 4 too low 7 DTX – Dynamic Text Extension for Contact Form 7 100K+ · 4.7★ (99) wp.org #13 ↓1 6 too low 8 Pixeline’s Email Protector 900+ · 4.3★ (8) wp.org #7 1 too high 9 Kali Forms — Contact Form & Drag-and-Drop Builder 10K+ · 4.8★ (89) wp.org #17 8 too low 10 Ebook Store 700+ · 4.4★ (60) wp.org #19 ↑1 9 too low 11 DecaLog 1K+ · 4.8★ (8) wp.org #6 5 too high 12 Presta Products for WordPress 70+ · 5.0★ (5) wp.org #8 4 too high 13 WPHH SECURE – AIO WordPress Security With File Locking & WP Hide Login 100+ · 5.0★ (7) wp.org #14 ↑1 1 too low 14 BotBlocker Security – Complete security platform 3K+ · 5.0★ (10) wp.org #18 ↓2 4 too low 15 Protector – Malware Removal, Firewall & Core Repair 200+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #12 ↑1 3 too high 16 Cryptex | E-Mail Address Protection 800+ · 4.0★ (4) wp.org #11 5 too high 17 MailArchiver 100+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #16 ↑2 1 too high 18 Email No Bot – Prevent bots from detecting emails 200+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #9 9 too high 19 Ajax loader + Cache 70+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #24 5 too low 20 WhoKnew Shield — Email, Phone & Address Security 30+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #15 ↑4 5 too high 21 Protect My Infos 100+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #21 ↑1 22 JS Links – SEO Link Obfuscation 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #23 ↑1 1 too low 23 24TT Login Security and Brander 10+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #20 ↑1 3 too high 24 RawType Order Exporter — Spreadsheet & CSV for WooCommerce 10+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #22 2 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.