Plugin Pulse Beta
← Rankings

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

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 tracker”, we and wp.org disagree on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 16 of the top 20. 6 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

Analytics Tracker shows at wp.org #5 but places #16 on merit, a gap of 11 places. Its 1K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 2 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Customer Reviews for WooCommerce places #6 on merit, 4.8★ from 1539 reviews, but shows at wp.org #22. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 CWILL (Formerly ParcelPanel) – Shipment Tracking, Tracking & Order Tracking for WooCommerce 7K+ · 4.9★ (538) wp.org #2 1 too low 2 BrikPanel: WooCommerce Dashboard & Analytics, Abandoned Cart Recovery, Order Export, Inventory Management & Bulk Editor 1K+ · 5.0★ (55) wp.org #3 ↑1 1 too low 3 HandL UTM Grabber / Tracker 10K+ · 4.8★ (146) wp.org #7 ↑1 4 too low 4 Order Tracker for WooCommerce – Track Customer Order 900+ · 4.3★ (6) wp.org #1 3 too high 5 Email Tracker 800+ · 4.4★ (21) wp.org #4 ↓1 1 too high 6 Customer Reviews for WooCommerce 80K+ · 4.8★ (1539) wp.org #22 ↑1 16 too low 7 Simple Download Monitor 20K+ · 4.7★ (158) wp.org #16 ↓3 9 too low 8 Activity Log – Monitor User and Agent Changes 200K+ · 4.3★ (74) wp.org #11 ↑3 3 too low 9 SlimStat Analytics – Real-Time Stats, Heatmaps & Ecommerce 70K+ · 4.8★ (816) wp.org #19 10 too low 10 Cookiebot – Cookie Banner & Cookie Consent for GDPR, CCPA & Google Consent Mode 100K+ · 4.4★ (440) wp.org #24 ↓3 14 too low 11 Advanced Shipment Tracking for WooCommerce 70K+ · 4.5★ (355) wp.org #17 ↑1 6 too low 12 Project Manager – AI Powered Project Management, Task Management, Kanban Board & Time Tracker 5K+ · 3.8★ (187) wp.org #18 ↑1 6 too low 13 UTM Event Tracker and Analytics, UTM Grabber 800+ · 5.0★ (6) wp.org #6 ↑1 7 too high 14 Trace My IP – Visitor IP Tracker, Stats Analytics & Page Views Counter with Email Alerts 1K+ · 4.5★ (21) wp.org #15 ↑2 1 too low 15 TrackShip for WooCommerce 5K+ · 4.7★ (52) wp.org #23 ↓1 8 too low 16 Analytics Tracker 1K+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #5 11 too high 17 Alpaca Issue Tracker 100+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #9 ↑1 8 too high 18 BaseCloud UTM Tracker 90+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #10 ↑1 8 too high 19 UTM Tracker for Contact Form 7 400+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #8 ↑1 11 too high 20 BanglaPress – bKash, & Mobile Payment with Order Tracking & Invoice & Shipping Label Printing for WooCommerce 300+ · 4.0★ (4) wp.org #12 8 too high 21 Flexible Refund for WooCommerce – EU One Click Return 2K+ · 4.0★ (4) wp.org #13 ↑2 8 too high 22 Track Orders for WooCommerce – Multi Carrier WooCommerce Shipping 200+ · 3.7★ (3) wp.org #14 ↑2 8 too high 23 Leenkat Editorial Tracker 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #20 3 too high 24 Nexoy Order Tracker for WooCommerce 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #21 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.