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

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 items”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 11 of the top 20. 7 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

Purchased Items Column for WooCommerce Orders shows at wp.org #7 but places #16 on merit, a gap of 9 places. Its 700+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 9 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Forminator Forms – Contact Form, Payment Form & Custom Form Builder places #8 on merit, 4.8★ from 2143 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 Advanced Order Export For WooCommerce 100K+ · 5.0★ (350) wp.org #4 1 too low 4 Custom Taxonomy Order 50K+ · 4.8★ (96) wp.org #5 1 too low 5 Order Export & Order Import for WooCommerce 50K+ · 4.7★ (337) wp.org #6 1 too low 6 Export Order Items for WooCommerce 1K+ · 4.7★ (9) wp.org #3 3 too high 7 CWILL (Formerly ParcelPanel) – Shipment Tracking, Tracking & Order Tracking for WooCommerce 7K+ · 4.9★ (538) wp.org #16 ↓1 9 too low 8 Forminator Forms – Contact Form, Payment Form & Custom Form Builder 600K+ · 4.8★ (2143) wp.org #18 ↓5 10 too low 9 BrikPanel: WooCommerce Dashboard & Analytics, Abandoned Cart Recovery, Order Export, Inventory Management & Bulk Editor 1K+ · 5.0★ (55) wp.org #8 1 too high 10 Art WooCommerce Order One Click 4K+ · 5.0★ (36) wp.org #13 ↓1 3 too low 11 WP Sort Order 6K+ · 4.5★ (17) wp.org #9 ↓1 2 too high 12 WP Term Order 6K+ · 4.8★ (20) wp.org #11 1 too high 13 Intuitive Custom Post Order 400K+ · 4.4★ (139) wp.org #20 ↓3 7 too low 14 WC Cancel Order 5K+ · 4.9★ (23) wp.org #10 4 too high 15 Order On Mobile for WooCommerce 2K+ · 4.9★ (66) wp.org #21 6 too low 16 Purchased Items Column for WooCommerce Orders 700+ · 5.0★ (9) wp.org #7 9 too high 17 Order Minimum/Maximum Amount Limits for WooCommerce 10K+ · 4.5★ (40) wp.org #17 ↑1 18 Supplier Order Email 300+ · 4.9★ (14) wp.org #24 ↓2 6 too low 19 Export Products, Orders & Customers for WooCommerce 2K+ · 4.6★ (14) wp.org #22 3 too low 20 WP All Export – Order Export for WooCommerce 3K+ · 3.9★ (8) wp.org #14 ↑6 6 too high 21 EU Order Withdrawal Button for WooCommerce 6K+ · 4.6★ (7) wp.org #12 ↓3 9 too high 22 RD Order Modifier for WooCommerce 300+ · 5.0★ (6) wp.org #19 3 too high 23 D Display Order Details 300+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #15 ↓1 8 too high 24 Order Splitter for WooCommerce 300+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #23 ↓7 1 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.