wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “older posts”

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 “older posts”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 8 of the top 20.

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 the install base is organic or host-pushed, and its risk of being pulled.

Ranked above its merit

Auto Post Cleaner shows at wp.org #13 but places #24 on merit, a gap of 11 places. Its 1K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 3 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Blog2Social: Social Media Auto Post & Scheduler places #6 on merit, 4.5★ from 2107 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 signals wp.org

Duplicate Post 300K+ · 4.9★ (1623) wp.org #1 2

Simple Custom Post Order 300K+ · 4.8★ (588) wp.org #2 3

Delete Duplicate Posts 10K+ · 4.8★ (153) wp.org #4 5

SchedulePress – Auto Post & Publish, Auto Social Share, Schedule Posts with Editorial Calendar & Missed Schedule Post Publisher 10K+ · 4.6★ (201) wp.org #5 6

Blog2Social: Social Media Auto Post & Scheduler 40K+ · 4.5★ (2107) wp.org #12 6 too low 7

Elementor Website Builder – more than just a page builder 10M+ · 4.5★ (7322) wp.org #14 6 too low 9

Post Duplicator 200K+ · 4.8★ (80) wp.org #9 10

WP-PageNavi 400K+ · 4.7★ (149) wp.org #10 11

Hide Posts 20K+ · 4.7★ (22) thin reviews wp.org #6 5 too high 12

Ultimate Post Kit – Elementor Post Grid, Post Carousel, Post Slider & Blog Layout Widgets 30K+ · 4.8★ (58) wp.org #11 1 too high 13

Flex Posts – Responsive Posts Block 2K+ · 5.0★ (24) thin reviews wp.org #8 5 too high 14

Wordfence Security – Firewall, Malware Scan, and Login Security 5M+ · 4.7★ (5039) wp.org #24 10 too low 15 W WP Meta and Date Remover 80K+ · 4.2★ (71) wp.org #15 16

Auto Featured Image (Auto Post Thumbnail) 40K+ · 3.8★ (119) wp.org #16 17

Blog Designer Pack – Blog, Post Grid, Post Slider, Post Carousel, Category Post, News 30K+ · 4.7★ (79) wp.org #20 3 too low 18

Jetpack – AI Agents & MCP, Security, Backup & Analytics 3M+ · 3.7★ (2408) wp.org #22 4 too low 19

Category Posts in Custom Menu 2K+ · 4.8★ (43) wp.org #17 2 too high 20 A ACF Post-2-Post 3K+ · 5.0★ (39) wp.org #23 3 too low 21

Display Post Types – Post Grid, post list and post sliders 8K+ · 5.0★ (26) wp.org #21 22

Bulk Images to Posts 1K+ · 4.8★ (18) thin reviews wp.org #19 3 too high 23

Most And Least Read Posts Widget 900+ · 5.0★ (6) thin reviews wp.org #18 5 too high 24

Auto Post Cleaner 1K+ · 5.0★ (3) thin reviews wp.org #13 11 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.