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

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 “prepayment”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 3 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

Novalnet Payment Gateway for Easy Digital Downloads shows at wp.org #9 but places #15 on merit, a gap of 6 places. Its 20+ installs carry it up the search order; its 4.0★ average from 1 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

merit plugin wp.org
1 morkva UA Shipping – Nova Poshta, Ukrposhta, Rozetka, Nova Global 1K+ · 4.9★ (29) wp.org #1 2 Komfortkasse for WooCommerce 100+ · 4.4★ (7) wp.org #3 ↓2 1 too low 3 Milo Subscriptions – Subscriptions for WooCommerce and Recurring Payments 200+ · 5.0★ (10) wp.org #5 ↓2 2 too low 4 Bangladeshi Payments Mobile – MFS Gateway, QR Code, Advance COD Protection, Thermal POS Invoicing & WhatsApp Suite 1K+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #2 2 too high 5 Easy Invoice – Invoice Generator, PDF Quotes & Payments 600+ · 4.4★ (7) wp.org #6 ↓2 1 too low 6 Novalnet Payment Gateway for WooCommerce 1K+ · 4.3★ (4) wp.org #4 ↓2 2 too high 7 Rento King – Car Rental System 20+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #10 ↓1 3 too low 8 Zenchef widget integration 2K+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #7 ↓2 1 too high 9 Unzer Payments 100+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #8 ↓2 1 too high 10 payever Checkout – Composable Payment Gateway 800+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #12 2 too low 11 LimaBook Restaurant & Cafe Reservations — WordPress Booking Plugin 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #13 ↑3 2 too low 12 Portrait-Archiv Photostore – Sell Photos & Client Galleries 10+ · 3.7★ (3) wp.org #11 ↓3 1 too high 13 OrderGuard 300+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #14 ↓2 1 too low 14 Toloka for monobank — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #15 ↓4 1 too low 15 Novalnet Payment Gateway for Easy Digital Downloads 20+ · 4.0★ (1) wp.org #9 ↓2 6 too high 16 UA Checkout — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #17 1 too low 17 Jojobry E-Rechnung for WooCommerce — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #18 ↓4 1 too low 18 Tellbill for WooCommerce — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #19 ↓4 1 too low 19 mee-table — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #20 ↓7 1 too low 20 Webwall Proposal Builder — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #21 ↓4 1 too low 21 CoverManager T Reservation Widget — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #22 ↓4 1 too low 22 LiqPay payment gateway for WooCommerce 50+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #16 ↓6 6 too high 23 Baza Booking Calendar — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #23 ↓4 24 Gravity Forms payment plugin – Novalnet AG 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #24 ↓4

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.