wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “pdf export”

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

Posts to PDF – Backend Batch Export shows at wp.org #8 but places #20 on merit, a gap of 12 places. Its 200+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 1 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Database Addon for Contact Form 7 – CFDB7 places #7 on merit, 5.0★ from 1875 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

PDF Invoices & Packing Slips for WooCommerce 300K+ · 5.0★ (1865) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #1 2

Advanced Order Export For WooCommerce 100K+ · 5.0★ (350) wp.org #2 3

Import and export users and customers 70K+ · 4.7★ (259) wp.org #4 ↑3 1 too low 4

Order Export & Order Import for WooCommerce 50K+ · 4.7★ (337) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #3 1 too high 5

PDF Poster – Let visitors read PDF’s without leaving the page 20K+ · 4.5★ (149) not PHP-current wp.org #7 ↓3 2 too low 6

PDF Builder for WooCommerce. Create invoices,packing slips and more 2K+ · 4.7★ (145) wp.org #13 7 too low 7

Database Addon for Contact Form 7 – CFDB7 600K+ · 5.0★ (1875) wp.org #21 ↑1 14 too low 8

Export WordPress Pages to Static HTML & PDF — Static Site Export 4K+ · 3.8★ (51) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #5 ↑1 3 too high 9

Real3D Flipbook – 3D Flipbook, PDF Flipbook, PDF Viewer, PDF Embedder 10K+ · 4.5★ (11) thin reviews wp.org #6 ↓1 3 too high 10

Fluent Forms – Customizable Contact Forms, Survey, Quiz, & Conversational Form Builder 800K+ · 4.8★ (807) wp.org #19 ↓1 9 too low 11

Ninja Forms – Contact Form Builder with Calculators, Quizzes, Signatures & AI Form Builder 500K+ · 4.4★ (1397) wp.org #24 13 too low 12

E2Pdf – Export Pdf Tool for WordPress 10K+ · 4.7★ (59) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #10 2 too high 13

Generate PDF using Contact Form 7 4K+ · 4.7★ (40) wp.org #14 1 too low 14

Events Manager – Calendar, Bookings, Tickets, Appointments and more! 60K+ · 4.2★ (551) not PHP-current wp.org #22 ↓1 8 too low 15

PDF Generator for WordPress 1K+ · 4.6★ (39) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #11 4 too high 16

PDF Invoices & Packing Slips for WooCommerce – Challan 7K+ · 4.6★ (47) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #12 4 too high 17

PDF Catalog for WooCommerce 1K+ · 4.3★ (26) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #9 8 too high 18

Flipa PDF Flipbook – PDF Viewer and Page Flip Book 800+ · 5.0★ (4) thin reviews wp.org #15 3 too high 19

WebEquipe PDF Search 200+ · 5.0★ (3) thin reviews wp.org #20 ↓3 1 too low 20

Posts to PDF – Backend Batch Export 200+ · 5.0★ (1) thin reviews wp.org #8 12 too high 21

Catalog PDF Export for WooCommerce 50+ · 5.0★ (2) thin reviews wp.org #17 ↑3 4 too high 22

Export Media as ZIP 3K+ · 3.7★ (3) thin reviews wp.org #16 6 too high 23

Export Orders for WooCommerce – AI & MCP for Claude and ChatGPT 500+ · 3.7★ (6) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews wp.org #23 24

PDF Generator for Posts & Pages – Export Any Post Type to PDF 90+ · 1.0★ (1) thin reviews wp.org #18 ↑1 6 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.