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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “pre order”

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 “pre order”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 9 of the top 20. 8 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

YITH Pre-Order for WooCommerce shows at wp.org #2 but places #10 on merit, a gap of 8 places. Its 6K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 3.1★ average from 16 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Order Splitter for WooCommerce places #12 on merit, 4.7★ from 70 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 Pre-Orders for WooCommerce 7K+ · 4.5★ (66) wp.org #1 2 Simple Custom Post Order 300K+ · 4.8★ (587) wp.org #3 ↓1 1 too low 3 WPForms – AI Form Builder for WordPress – Contact Forms, Payment Forms, Survey Form, Quiz & More 5M+ · 4.8★ (14387) wp.org #9 ↓1 6 too low 4 Payment Plugins for Stripe WooCommerce 100K+ · 4.8★ (303) wp.org #5 1 too low 5 Forminator Forms – Contact Form, Payment Form & Custom Form Builder 600K+ · 4.8★ (2143) wp.org #12 ↓1 7 too low 6 Order Export & Order Import for WooCommerce 50K+ · 4.7★ (337) wp.org #7 1 too low 7 Custom Order Status Manager for WooCommerce 30K+ · 4.7★ (117) wp.org #6 1 too high 8 Payment Plugins for PayPal WooCommerce 80K+ · 4.8★ (127) wp.org #8 ↑6 9 PRENA – Product Pre-Orders for WooCommerce 2K+ · 4.7★ (12) wp.org #4 5 too high 10 YITH Pre-Order for WooCommerce 6K+ · 3.1★ (16) wp.org #2 ↑1 8 too high 11 Superb Addons: Blocks, Patterns, Pre-built Pages, Sliders, Popups, Free Forms, Animations & More 80K+ · 4.9★ (23) wp.org #15 ↑1 4 too low 12 Order Splitter for WooCommerce 300+ · 4.7★ (70) wp.org #23 11 too low 13 Order Minimum/Maximum Amount Limits for WooCommerce 10K+ · 4.5★ (40) wp.org #13 14 Product Labels, Quick View, Buy Now, Pre-Orders, Frequently Bought Together & More for WooCommerce – Merchant 9K+ · 4.2★ (11) wp.org #10 ↓1 4 too high 15 WooCommerce Stripe Payment Gateway 700K+ · 3.1★ (237) wp.org #11 ↑1 4 too high 16 Sequential Order Numbers for WooCommerce 10K+ · 3.8★ (29) wp.org #17 1 too low 17 Trakoo – Orders Tracking for WooCommerce 10K+ · 4.5★ (58) wp.org #22 ↑1 5 too low 18 Place Order Without Payment for WooCommerce 3K+ · 4.8★ (20) wp.org #16 2 too high 19 Pre-Publish Checklist 1K+ · 5.0★ (11) wp.org #19 ↑1 20 Order Delivery Date And Time 1K+ · 4.6★ (19) wp.org #14 ↑1 6 too high 21 Thim Kit for Elementor – Pre-built Templates & Widgets for Elementor 20K+ · 4.2★ (5) wp.org #24 3 too low 22 JSM Show Order Metadata for WooCommerce HPOS 700+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #20 ↑1 2 too high 23 Spotrebiteľské práva pre WooCommerce 300+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #18 5 too high 24 WooCommerce Payfast Gateway 30K+ · 3.0★ (7) wp.org #21 3 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.