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

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 “pending”, we and wp.org disagree on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 12 of the top 20. 5 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

Comment Link Remove and Other Comment Tools shows at wp.org #8 but places #17 on merit, a gap of 9 places. Its 8K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 4.1★ average from 15 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Customize WordPress Emails and Alerts – Better Notifications for WP places #12 on merit, 4.8★ from 184 reviews, but shows at wp.org #20. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Duplicate Page 3M+ · 4.8★ (466) wp.org #2 1 too low 2 Easy Updates Manager 300K+ · 4.8★ (726) wp.org #4 ↓1 2 too low 3 bbPress 100K+ · 3.9★ (343) wp.org #3 ↑1 4 Pending Status 200+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #1 3 too high 5 Media File Renamer: Rename Images & Files for SEO (AI-Powered) 40K+ · 4.6★ (447) wp.org #7 ↑5 2 too low 6 PublishPress Revisions: Duplicate Posts, Submit, Approve and Schedule Content Changes 10K+ · 4.6★ (66) wp.org #6 ↑1 7 W WP Photo Album Plus 10K+ · 4.7★ (199) wp.org #5 2 too high 8 Booking Calendar 40K+ · 4.8★ (657) wp.org #12 ↓4 4 too low 9 Simple Custom Post Order 300K+ · 4.8★ (588) wp.org #15 6 too low 10 New User Approve 20K+ · 4.3★ (131) wp.org #10 ↑8 11 Bulk Delete 30K+ · 4.3★ (129) wp.org #11 ↓1 12 Customize WordPress Emails and Alerts – Better Notifications for WP 30K+ · 4.8★ (184) wp.org #20 ↓11 8 too low 13 UPI QR Code Payment Gateway for WooCommerce 10K+ · 4.8★ (256) wp.org #18 ↑3 5 too low 14 WP Comment Cleaner – Delete All Comments, Disable Comments, Bulk Delete & Remove Comments 20K+ · 4.7★ (58) wp.org #21 ↓1 7 too low 15 Afterpay Gateway for WooCommerce 10K+ · 3.6★ (45) wp.org #9 6 too high 16 Admin Slug Column 5K+ · 4.9★ (31) wp.org #19 ↓2 3 too low 17 Comment Link Remove and Other Comment Tools 8K+ · 4.1★ (15) wp.org #8 ↓3 9 too high 18 Easy Actions Scheduler Cleaner 900+ · 5.0★ (9) wp.org #14 ↓1 4 too high 19 Invoice Payment Gateway for WooCommerce 2K+ · 5.0★ (11) wp.org #16 ↓2 3 too high 20 SeatReg 300+ · 5.0★ (30) wp.org #23 ↓4 3 too low 21 Product Attachment for WooCommerce 6K+ · 4.5★ (24) wp.org #24 3 too low 22 PublishPress Statuses – Custom Post Status and Workflow 1K+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #13 ↓2 9 too high 23 YITH PayPal Express Checkout for WooCommerce 1K+ · 4.4★ (7) wp.org #17 ↓2 6 too high 24 UddoktaPay 1K+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #22 ↓1 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.