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

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 “prettify”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 13 of the top 20. 6 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

Comment Controller shows at wp.org #9 but places #16 on merit, a gap of 7 places. Its 10+ 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

Search, Filters & Merchandising for WooCommerce places #3 on merit, 4.6★ from 169 reviews, but shows at wp.org #10. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin signals wp.org

Code Prettify 1K+ · 5.0★ (18) thin reviews wp.org #1 2

One User Avatar | User Profile Picture 100K+ · 4.7★ (41) wp.org #7 5 too low 3

Search, Filters & Merchandising for WooCommerce 200+ · 4.6★ (169) not PHP-current wp.org #10 7 too low 4

Shared Albums for Google Photos 500+ · 4.9★ (10) thin reviews wp.org #6 2 too low 5 W WP-Markdown 300+ · 4.5★ (28) closure risk wp.org #12 7 too low 6

CC-Syntax-Highlight 60+ · 5.0★ (1) thin reviews wp.org #2 4 too high 7

Block Collections — · 0.0★ (0) thin reviewslow rating, top placement wp.org #4 3 too high 8

WPGraphQL IDE 1K+ · 0.0★ (0) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviewslow rating, top placement wp.org #3 5 too high 9

Forms Bridge – Infinite integrations 100+ · 5.0★ (2) thin reviews wp.org #8 1 too high 10

Simple Code Highlighter 300+ · 4.7★ (7) closure risk thin reviews wp.org #16 6 too low 11

Data Debug Tool — · 0.0★ (0) thin reviewslow rating, top placementstale but ranked wp.org #5 6 too high 12 W WP Code Prettify 100+ · 4.7★ (3) closure risk thin reviews wp.org #13 1 too low 13 P Prettify Code Syntax 70+ · 4.2★ (12) throws errorsnot PHP-currentclosure risk thin reviews wp.org #22 9 too low 14

Smart Syntax 10+ · 5.0★ (3) closure risk thin reviews wp.org #17 3 too low 15

Easy Syntax Highlighter 30+ · 0.0★ (0) thin reviews wp.org #11 4 too high 16

Comment Controller 10+ · 5.0★ (1) thin reviews wp.org #9 7 too high 17

Prism Highlight 20+ · 0.0★ (0) closure risk thin reviews wp.org #14 3 too high 18

Annytab Code Prettify — · 0.0★ (0) closure risk thin reviews wp.org #15 3 too high 19

Multipart robots.txt editor 1K+ · 3.3★ (3) closure risk thin reviews wp.org #20 1 too low 20 W WP Cleanup and base Functions 10+ · 5.0★ (1) closure risk thin reviews wp.org #18 2 too high 21 A A Shortcode Tester 10+ · 5.0★ (1) closure risk thin reviews wp.org #19 2 too high 22

Dynamic SEO Child Pages 10+ · 5.0★ (1) closure risk thin reviews wp.org #23 1 too low 23 W WP-code-button 10+ · 0.0★ (0) throws errorsnot PHP-currentclosure risk thin reviews wp.org #21 2 too high 24 C Code Prettify Syntax Highlighter 10+ · 5.0★ (1) closure risk thin reviews 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.