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← Rankings

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

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 “picking”, we and wp.org disagree on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 14 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

Order Picking For WooCommerce shows at wp.org #2 but places #14 on merit, a gap of 12 places. Its 70+ installs carry it up the search order; its 3.5★ average from 4 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

WPZOOM Connect: Social Icons Widget & Block, Share Buttons & Click to Chat places #11 on merit, 4.9★ from 144 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 WP Store Locator 40K+ · 4.8★ (312) wp.org #3 ↓1 2 too low 2 Quiz Maker by AYS 20K+ · 4.9★ (601) wp.org #6 ↑8 4 too low 3 Order Picking App | Order Picking, Barcode Scanning & Fulfillment for WooCommerce 30+ · 4.6★ (7) wp.org #1 2 too high 4 Booking for Appointments and Events Calendar – Amelia 90K+ · 4.6★ (793) wp.org #9 ↑3 5 too low 5 Maps Plugin using Google Maps for WordPress – WP Google Map 10K+ · 4.8★ (172) wp.org #8 3 too low 6 Slideshow SE 2K+ · 4.9★ (8) wp.org #4 2 too high 7 Visualizer – Tables & Charts Manager with Built-in AI Generator 20K+ · 4.4★ (225) wp.org #10 3 too low 8 Barcode Scanner (+Mobile App) – Inventory manager, Order fulfillment system, POS (Point of Sale) 700+ · 5.0★ (52) wp.org #7 1 too high 9 Seriously Simple Podcasting 20K+ · 4.7★ (330) wp.org #12 ↓1 3 too low 10 Pay for Payment for WooCommerce – Payment Gateway Fees & Discounts 10K+ · 4.7★ (71) wp.org #14 ↑1 4 too low 11 WPZOOM Connect: Social Icons Widget & Block, Share Buttons & Click to Chat 90K+ · 4.9★ (144) wp.org #20 9 too low 12 Ninjalytics: Sales Reports & Order Export for WooCommerce and EDD 6K+ · 4.4★ (57) wp.org #18 ↑1 6 too low 13 Packeta 8K+ · 4.0★ (9) wp.org #5 8 too high 14 Order Picking For WooCommerce 70+ · 3.5★ (4) wp.org #2 ↑1 12 too high 15 PDF Invoices & Packing Slips for WooCommerce – Challan 7K+ · 4.6★ (47) wp.org #15 ↑3 16 AffiliateX – Amazon Affiliate Plugin, Product Boxes, Comparison Tables & Affiliate Link Tracking 9K+ · 4.5★ (35) wp.org #23 ↑1 7 too low 17 Address Autocomplete Anything – Google Address Autocomplete for Any Form 900+ · 5.0★ (16) wp.org #21 4 too low 18 VikRestaurants Table Reservations and Take-Away 600+ · 4.8★ (10) wp.org #22 ↑1 4 too low 19 Shipink 100+ · 5.0★ (5) wp.org #19 ↑1 20 Embed STL 400+ · 4.5★ (2) wp.org #13 7 too high 21 Order Picking App | Locations for WooCommerce — · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #17 ↓1 4 too high 22 PickingPal Lite for WooCommerce 40+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #11 ↓2 11 too high 23 Range Slider for Elementor Forms 300+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #16 ↑1 7 too high 24 Weight Products for WooCommerce 20+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #24 ↓2

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.