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

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 alerts”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 12 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

Order on Mobile for WooCommerce shows at wp.org #5 but places #17 on merit, a gap of 12 places. Its 7K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 4 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Cart Abandonment Recovery for WooCommerce – Recover Lost Sales with Automated Emails places #10 on merit, 4.8★ from 626 reviews, but shows at wp.org #21. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin signals wp.org

Wordfence Security – Firewall, Malware Scan, and Login Security 5M+ · 4.7★ (5040) wp.org #1 2

Post SMTP – Complete Email Delivery and SMTP Solution with Email Logs, Alerts, Backup SMTP & Mobile App 300K+ · 4.7★ (528) wp.org #2 3

WooCommerce 7M+ · 4.5★ (4833) wp.org #4 ↑2 1 too low 4

Order Tracking – WordPress Status Tracking Plugin 3K+ · 4.6★ (73) wp.org #3 ↑2 1 too high 5

Elementor Website Builder – more than just a page builder 10M+ · 4.5★ (7322) wp.org #6 ↑2 1 too low 6

CWILL (Formerly ParcelPanel) – Shipment Tracking, Tracking & Order Tracking for WooCommerce 7K+ · 4.9★ (538) wp.org #8 2 too low 7

Intuitive Custom Post Order 400K+ · 4.4★ (139) wp.org #9 ↑2 2 too low 8

Jetpack – AI Agents & MCP, Security, Backup & Analytics 3M+ · 3.7★ (2408) wp.org #11 3 too low 9

NinjaFirewall (WP Edition) – Advanced Security Plugin and Firewall 100K+ · 4.9★ (220) wp.org #18 ↑6 9 too low 10

Cart Abandonment Recovery for WooCommerce – Recover Lost Sales with Automated Emails 300K+ · 4.8★ (626) wp.org #21 11 too low 11

All-In-One Security (AIOS) – Security and Firewall 1M+ · 4.7★ (1720) wp.org #20 9 too low 12

Notification – Custom Notifications and Alerts for WordPress 10K+ · 4.6★ (124) wp.org #16 ↑1 4 too low 13

Order Tip for WooCommerce 2K+ · 4.3★ (16) thin reviews wp.org #7 ↓2 6 too high 14

SMS Alert – SMS Notifications & OTP Login, COD Verification, Abandoned Cart Recovery 3K+ · 4.6★ (35) wp.org #13 1 too high 15

WP Crontrol 300K+ · 4.4★ (167) wp.org #24 9 too low 16

WSMS (formerly WP SMS): SMS Notifications, OTP Login and WooCommerce SMS 7K+ · 4.1★ (107) wp.org #19 3 too low 17

Order on Mobile for WooCommerce 7K+ · 5.0★ (4) thin reviews wp.org #5 ↓2 12 too high 18

New Order Notification for WooCommerce 1K+ · 4.4★ (14) thin reviews wp.org #10 ↑2 8 too high 19

Order Limit for WooCommerce (Free Version) 800+ · 4.2★ (13) thin reviews wp.org #12 ↑2 7 too high 20

WebToffee EU Order Withdrawal Button for WooCommerce 1K+ · 5.0★ (10) thin reviews wp.org #15 ↑1 5 too high 21

OrderConvo – Vendor & Customer Messages After Orders 200+ · 4.6★ (22) thin reviews wp.org #23 ↓1 2 too low 22

Instant Order Notification for WooCommerce – Get Audio Alert on new Orders 50+ · 4.7★ (3) thin reviews wp.org #17 ↑1 5 too high 23

Order Tags or Order Label for WooCommerce 200+ · 5.0★ (2) thin reviews wp.org #14 ↑1 9 too high 24

ChaChing – New Order Notifications for WooCommerce 90+ · 5.0★ (1) thin reviews wp.org #22 ↓3 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.