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

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 “presale”, we and wp.org disagree on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 8 of the top 17. 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

Cryptocurrency (Token), Launchpad (Presale), ICO & IDO, Airdrop by TokenICO shows at wp.org #1 but places #5 on merit, a gap of 4 places. Its 20+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 2 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

LifterLMS – WP LMS for eLearning, Online Courses, & Quizzes places #3 on merit, 4.8★ from 393 reviews, but shows at wp.org #14. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin signals wp.org

WP Chat App 100K+ · 4.9★ (222) wp.org #3 2 too low 2

Event Tickets with Ticket Scanner 1K+ · 4.8★ (24) not PHP-current thin reviews wp.org #4 2 too low 3

LifterLMS – WP LMS for eLearning, Online Courses, & Quizzes 10K+ · 4.8★ (393) wp.org #14 11 too low 4

Text: AI chatbot, live chat & ticketing for customer service 100+ · 5.0★ (15) thin reviews wp.org #7 3 too low 5

Cryptocurrency (Token), Launchpad (Presale), ICO & IDO, Airdrop by TokenICO 20+ · 5.0★ (2) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews wp.org #1 ↑1 4 too high 6

Bandsintown Events 4K+ · 3.3★ (8) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviewslow rating, top placement wp.org #2 ↓1 4 too high 7

Hyve Lite – AI Chatbot Trained on WordPress Posts, Pages, Products & More with ChatGPT 7K+ · 4.3★ (6) thin reviews wp.org #5 2 too high 8

Paid Videochat Turnkey Site – HTML5 PPV Live Webcams 10+ · 4.2★ (22) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews wp.org #10 ↓1 2 too low 9

HelpJet – AI Support Chatbot Trained on Your Website & Docs 100+ · 4.5★ (2) thin reviews wp.org #8 1 too high 10

tymok Presale Waitlist for WooCommerce — · 0.0★ (0) thin reviews wp.org #6 4 too high 11

Talkino – WordPress Chat Plugin 10+ · 5.0★ (3) closure risk thin reviews wp.org #16 5 too low 12

TierStep – Early Bird Discount, Progressive Discount & Launch Pricing for WooCommerce — · 0.0★ (0) thin reviews wp.org #11 ↑1 2 too high 14

Etaks Live Chat — · 0.0★ (0) thin reviews wp.org #12 ↓1 2 too high 15

Kitsuly Commerce — · 0.0★ (0) thin reviews wp.org #15 16 R Rhino Support for WordPress 10+ · 5.0★ (2) throws errorsnot PHP-currentclosure risk thin reviews wp.org #17 1 too low 17

Portfolio Responsive Gallery 200+ · 3.0★ (2) thin reviews wp.org #13 4 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.