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

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 “order”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 7 of the top 20. 8 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

Custom Order Numbers for WooCommerce shows at wp.org #7 but places #15 on merit, a gap of 8 places. Its 20K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 4.2★ average from 25 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

CWILL (Formerly ParcelPanel) – Shipment Tracking, Tracking & Order Tracking for WooCommerce places #9 on merit, 4.9★ from 538 reviews, but shows at wp.org #18. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Post Types Order 600K+ · 4.5★ (296) wp.org #1 2 Simple Custom Post Order 300K+ · 4.8★ (587) wp.org #2 3 Category Order and Taxonomy Terms Order 500K+ · 4.5★ (162) wp.org #3 4 Advanced Order Export For WooCommerce 100K+ · 5.0★ (350) wp.org #5 ↑1 1 too low 5 Custom Taxonomy Order 50K+ · 4.8★ (96) wp.org #4 ↑1 1 too high 6 Sequential Order Number for WooCommerce 50K+ · 4.9★ (146) wp.org #8 ↓1 2 too low 7 Order Export & Order Import for WooCommerce 50K+ · 4.7★ (337) wp.org #6 ↑2 1 too high 8 Forminator Forms – Contact Form, Payment Form & Custom Form Builder 600K+ · 4.8★ (2143) wp.org #13 ↓3 5 too low 9 CWILL (Formerly ParcelPanel) – Shipment Tracking, Tracking & Order Tracking for WooCommerce 7K+ · 4.9★ (538) wp.org #18 ↑2 9 too low 10 BrikPanel: WooCommerce Dashboard & Analytics, Abandoned Cart Recovery, Order Export, Inventory Management & Bulk Editor 1K+ · 5.0★ (55) wp.org #9 1 too high 11 Custom Order Status Manager for WooCommerce 30K+ · 4.7★ (117) wp.org #11 ↑1 12 Real Custom Post Order: Create a custom order for your content 8K+ · 4.8★ (42) wp.org #12 ↑1 13 Autocomplete WooCommerce Orders 30K+ · 4.6★ (137) wp.org #22 ↓1 9 too low 14 WP Sort Order 6K+ · 4.5★ (17) wp.org #10 ↑1 4 too high 15 Custom Order Numbers for WooCommerce 20K+ · 4.2★ (25) wp.org #7 ↓3 8 too high 16 OneClick Chat to Order 30K+ · 4.8★ (84) wp.org #14 ↓5 2 too high 17 Order Tracking – WordPress Status Tracking Plugin 3K+ · 4.6★ (73) wp.org #24 ↓2 7 too low 18 WP Term Order 6K+ · 4.8★ (20) wp.org #17 ↑1 1 too high 19 WC Cancel Order 5K+ · 4.9★ (23) wp.org #16 3 too high 20 Order Tip for WooCommerce 2K+ · 4.3★ (16) wp.org #15 5 too high 21 Custom Order Status for WooCommerce 10K+ · 3.3★ (32) wp.org #20 1 too high 22 Repeat Order for WooCommerce 3K+ · 4.3★ (6) wp.org #19 3 too high 23 EU Order Withdrawal Button for WooCommerce 6K+ · 4.6★ (7) wp.org #23 ↓6 24 Order on Mobile for WooCommerce 7K+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #21 ↓7 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.