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

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 posts”, we and wp.org disagree on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 10 of the top 20. 3 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

User Posts Limit shows at wp.org #8 but places #15 on merit, a gap of 7 places. Its 3K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 13 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

WP RSS Aggregator – RSS Import, Feed to Post, Autoblogging, AI Content places #10 on merit, 4.5★ from 565 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 signals wp.org

Simple Custom Post Order 300K+ · 4.8★ (588) wp.org #2 1 too low 2

User Submitted Posts – Enable Users to Submit Posts from the Front End 10K+ · 4.8★ (913) wp.org #4 2 too low 3

Delete Duplicate Posts 10K+ · 4.8★ (153) wp.org #3 4

Pending Status 200+ · 5.0★ (4) thin reviews wp.org #1 4 too high 6

Post SMTP – Complete Email Delivery and SMTP Solution with Email Logs, Alerts, Backup SMTP & Mobile App 300K+ · 4.7★ (528) wp.org #9 ↓3 3 too low 7

Post Duplicator 200K+ · 4.8★ (80) wp.org #7 8

Duplicate Page 3M+ · 4.8★ (466) wp.org #10 2 too low 9

Wordfence Security – Firewall, Malware Scan, and Login Security 5M+ · 4.7★ (5039) heavy footprint wp.org #13 4 too low 10

WP RSS Aggregator – RSS Import, Feed to Post, Autoblogging, AI Content 40K+ · 4.5★ (565) wp.org #17 ↓2 7 too low 11

PublishPress Revisions: Duplicate Posts, Submit, Approve and Schedule Content Changes 10K+ · 4.6★ (66) wp.org #11 12

Posts Table with Search & Sort 3K+ · 4.6★ (19) thin reviews wp.org #6 ↑3 6 too high 13

bbPress 100K+ · 3.9★ (343) wp.org #14 1 too low 14

Bulk Delete 30K+ · 4.3★ (129) wp.org #16 2 too low 15

User Posts Limit 3K+ · 5.0★ (13) thin reviews wp.org #8 7 too high 16

Intuitive Custom Post Order 400K+ · 4.4★ (139) wp.org #22 ↓1 6 too low 17

Bulk Images to Posts 1K+ · 4.8★ (18) not PHP-current thin reviews wp.org #12 5 too high 18

WP Ultimate Post Grid 4K+ · 4.4★ (32) heavy footprint wp.org #24 ↓2 6 too low 19

Mass Pages/Posts Creator 1K+ · 4.2★ (17) thin reviews wp.org #23 4 too low 20

Post Export Import with Media 1K+ · 4.5★ (8) thin reviews wp.org #19 1 too high 21

Publish Post Email Notification 600+ · 5.0★ (3) thin reviews wp.org #15 6 too high 22

PublishPress Statuses – Custom Post Status and Workflow 1K+ · 5.0★ (4) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews wp.org #21 ↓1 1 too high 23

Colored Admin Post List 500+ · 5.0★ (3) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews wp.org #18 ↓1 5 too high 24

Default Post Author 1K+ · 5.0★ (2) thin reviews wp.org #20 ↓2 4 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.