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

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 “parallel”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 11 of the top 20. 2 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

ABCode Cache Warmer shows at wp.org #8 but places #16 on merit, a gap of 8 places. Its 100+ 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

OAuth Single Sign On – SSO (OAuth Client) places #6 on merit, 4.9★ from 327 reviews, but shows at wp.org #17. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 AddToAny Share Buttons 300K+ · 4.7★ (1114) wp.org #1 2 Restricted Site Access 10K+ · 4.8★ (62) wp.org #2 3 WP Data Access – App Builder for Tables, Forms, Dashboards, Charts & Maps 10K+ · 4.9★ (88) wp.org #3 ↑1 4 Drag and Drop Multiple File Upload for Contact Form 7 60K+ · 4.8★ (94) wp.org #4 ↓1 5 Donation Platform for WooCommerce: Fundraising & Donation Management 7K+ · 4.9★ (99) wp.org #10 5 too low 6 OAuth Single Sign On – SSO (OAuth Client) 6K+ · 4.9★ (327) wp.org #17 ↓1 11 too low 7 Drag and Drop Multiple File Upload for WooCommerce 5K+ · 4.9★ (20) wp.org #7 ↓1 8 Salon Booking System – Appointment Booking for Salons, Barbershops & Spas 2K+ · 4.4★ (187) wp.org #9 1 too low 9 ImgSEO – AI Image Alt Text Generator & Image SEO Tools 400+ · 5.0★ (10) wp.org #5 4 too high 10 Affiliate Super Assistent 1K+ · 4.6★ (36) wp.org #12 ↑1 2 too low 11 MegaOptim Image Optimizer – Convert to WebP & AVIF, Compress Images Locally 100+ · 5.0★ (34) wp.org #15 4 too low 12 PI Delivery & Pickup Date Time for WooCommerce 400+ · 4.8★ (90) wp.org #20 8 too low 13 Conference Scheduler 200+ · 4.2★ (5) wp.org #6 ↑1 7 too high 14 Web3 Crypto Payments by DePay for WooCommerce 1K+ · 4.0★ (12) wp.org #11 3 too high 15 TheDock Media – Image Optimizer: Compress Images, Convert to WebP & AVIF 400+ · 5.0★ (5) wp.org #16 ↑1 1 too low 16 ABCode Cache Warmer 100+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #8 8 too high 17 Payment Plugins for Stripe Elementor – by Pay Addons 100+ · 5.0★ (6) wp.org #21 4 too low 18 DropAvif Image Optimizer – Convert WebP & AVIF | Compress Images 80+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #23 5 too low 19 CopySafe Video Protection – Copy Protect Video 100+ · 3.7★ (6) wp.org #19 ↓1 20 FrontEdit – Live Frontend Block Editor 2K+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #13 ↓1 7 too high 21 HHG for TranslatePress 1K+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #14 7 too high 22 Easy File Upload & Approval – A Simple File Submission & Review System 60+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #18 ↑1 4 too high 23 Classic Honeypot for CF7 80+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #24 1 too low 24 CloudSync Master – Offload Media to S3, Cloudflare R2 & Google Cloud 20+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #22 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.