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← Rankings

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

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 “posters”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 9 of the top 20. 2 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

Image Prioritizer shows at wp.org #5 but places #21 on merit, a gap of 16 places. Its 40K+ 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

HTML5 Audio Player – The Ultimate No-Code Podcast, MP3 & Audio Player places #10 on merit, 4.6★ from 169 reviews, but shows at wp.org #23. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 PDF Poster – Let visitors read PDF’s without leaving the page 20K+ · 4.5★ (149) wp.org #1 2 Social Media Auto Poster – Schedule & Publish to Buffer 7K+ · 4.5★ (125) wp.org #2 3 NextScripts: Social Networks Auto-Poster 20K+ · 3.3★ (617) wp.org #3 4 Presto Player 100K+ · 4.8★ (346) wp.org #7 ↓1 3 too low 5 Bit Social – Social Media Auto Poster and Scheduler 6K+ · 4.5★ (36) wp.org #4 1 too high 6 Lightbox & Modal Popup WordPress Plugin – FooBox 100K+ · 3.9★ (95) wp.org #8 2 too low 7 Videojs HTML5 Player 7K+ · 4.7★ (18) wp.org #6 ↑1 1 too high 8 AWP Classifieds 3K+ · 4.6★ (301) wp.org #19 ↑3 11 too low 9 Easy Video Player 20K+ · 4.2★ (57) wp.org #18 ↓1 9 too low 10 HTML5 Audio Player – The Ultimate No-Code Podcast, MP3 & Audio Player 10K+ · 4.6★ (169) wp.org #23 13 too low 11 Photo Gallery – Image, Video & Portfolio 1K+ · 4.8★ (13) wp.org #11 12 xSpeed Cache: AI-Powered Performance Hub with MCP, Caching & CDN 10K+ · 5.0★ (22) wp.org #17 ↑4 5 too low 13 Social Media Auto Poster – Schedule & Publish to Hootsuite 200+ · 4.1★ (15) wp.org #13 ↓1 14 Jetpack VideoPress 7K+ · 4.0★ (16) wp.org #14 15 Video Background Block – Add Stunning Video Backgrounds to Any Section 2K+ · 4.5★ (4) wp.org #9 6 too high 16 Video Player Block – play videos beautifully on any device 2K+ · 5.0★ (8) wp.org #16 17 Sharing Image 600+ · 4.7★ (3) wp.org #10 7 too high 18 Button Block – Stylish buttons that get more clicks 5K+ · 5.0★ (7) wp.org #21 ↓2 3 too low 19 AR for WordPress 300+ · 4.6★ (10) wp.org #20 ↓2 1 too low 20 Video Gallery 600+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #12 ↑1 8 too high 21 Image Prioritizer 40K+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #5 16 too high 22 Info Cards – Add Text and Media in Card Layouts 2K+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #22 ↑2 23 AI Content Writer – Automatic Content Generator and Auto Poster 200+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #15 ↑5 8 too high 24 Embed Optimizer 50K+ · 3.0★ (2) wp.org #24

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.