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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “pick em”

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 “pick em”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 9 of the top 20.

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 the install base is organic or host-pushed, and its risk of being pulled.

Ranked above its merit

WunderGoal — Football Picks & Pools shows at wp.org #7 but places #16 on merit, a gap of 9 places. Its — installs carry it up the search order; its 0.0★ average from 0 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Content Views – Post Grid & Filter (Shortcode, Blocks, Elementor Widgets) places #5 on merit, 4.8★ from 333 reviews, but shows at wp.org #13. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Kubio AI Page Builder 80K+ · 4.4★ (79) wp.org #1 2 Kraken.io Image Optimizer – Compress, Convert to WebP & AVIF, Resize & Bulk Optimize 10K+ · 4.5★ (119) wp.org #2 3 SEO Engine – Smart SEO with AI, Schema & Redirection for WordPress 1K+ · 4.9★ (48) wp.org #4 1 too low 4 Event Monster – Event Manager, Event Booking, Event Ticket & Registration 600+ · 4.8★ (18) wp.org #3 1 too high 5 Content Views – Post Grid & Filter (Shortcode, Blocks, Elementor Widgets) 100K+ · 4.8★ (333) wp.org #13 8 too low 6 Dashboard To-Do List 1K+ · 5.0★ (8) wp.org #6 ↓1 7 Easy Accordion Block – Accordion, FAQ & Collapsible Content for the Block Editor 7K+ · 4.4★ (16) wp.org #8 1 too low 8 ResponsiveVoice Text To Speech 7K+ · 3.9★ (34) wp.org #10 ↓1 2 too low 9 BrainyPress 100+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #5 ↑1 4 too high 10 Order Bump for WooCommerce 600+ · 4.4★ (18) wp.org #17 ↓2 7 too low 11 AutoListicle: Automatically Update Numbered List Articles 60+ · 5.0★ (6) wp.org #12 ↓1 1 too low 12 Resolai – AI Chatbot for Customer Support 300+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #9 ↑5 3 too high 13 LiveLang – Smart Multilingual Visual Translator 30+ · 5.0★ (5) wp.org #16 ↑1 3 too low 14 Shipment Tracking for WooCommerce – Trackora 100+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #15 ↑1 1 too low 15 GreetPlayer – Video Player, Video Bubble, Audio Player & Lead Capture 100+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #11 ↓1 4 too high 16 WunderGoal — Football Picks & Pools — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #7 9 too high 17 TableCrafter – Data to Beautiful Tables 10+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #22 ↓1 5 too low 18 Amitry Maintenance Mode & Coming Soon 70+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #14 ↓2 4 too high 19 Affiliate Program for WooCommerce – Sevol 20+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #18 1 too high 20 NEO Bootstrap Carousel 30+ · 4.0★ (3) wp.org #23 ↓1 3 too low 21 Festival Banner 20+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #20 1 too high 22 MoxKit Addons for Elementor 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #21 1 too high 23 Multi-Carrier EasyPost Shipping Methods & Address Validation for WooCommerce 400+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #19 4 too high 24 PressGo AI — Landing Page & Website Builder for Elementor 100+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #24 ↓1

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.