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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “print api”

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 “print api”, we and wp.org disagree on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 14 of the top 20.

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 the install base is organic or host-pushed, and its risk of being pulled.

W

Ranked above its merit

WP Print Friendly shows at wp.org #10 but places #23 on merit, a gap of 13 places. Its 500+ installs carry it up the search order; its 3.5★ average from 2 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

WP Recipe Maker places #10 on merit, 5.0★ from 356 reviews, but shows at wp.org #18. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 WooCommerce 7M+ · 4.5★ (4833) wp.org #4 3 too low 2 Print My Blog – Print, PDF, & eBook Converter WordPress Plugin 8K+ · 4.8★ (115) wp.org #3 1 too low 3 WP-Print 8K+ · 4.4★ (41) wp.org #2 1 too high 4 PDF Invoices & Packing Slips for WooCommerce 300K+ · 5.0★ (1865) wp.org #8 ↑1 4 too low 5 Print Invoice & Delivery Notes for WooCommerce 30K+ · 4.4★ (140) wp.org #5 6 Photo Gallery, Sliders, Proofing and Themes – NextGEN Gallery 300K+ · 4.3★ (4342) wp.org #9 ↓1 3 too low 7 WP Mail SMTP by WPForms – SMTP for Reliable Email Delivery with Gmail, Outlook, Amazon SES, Brevo, Other SMTP & More 4M+ · 4.8★ (5209) wp.org #12 5 too low 8 Contact Form to Any API 8K+ · 5.0★ (28) wp.org #6 ↑1 2 too high 9 SteadFast API 8K+ · 3.3★ (3) wp.org #1 8 too high 10 WP Recipe Maker 50K+ · 5.0★ (356) wp.org #18 ↓3 8 too low 11 Print Anywhere & Create PDFs of Order Receipts, Invoices, Labels & More. 1K+ · 4.7★ (18) wp.org #7 ↓1 4 too high 12 WPVibe – MCP Server for WordPress, works with Claude, ChatGPT & other AI MCP agents 100K+ · 5.0★ (199) wp.org #19 ↓2 7 too low 13 WP Store Locator 40K+ · 4.8★ (312) wp.org #23 10 too low 14 Barcode Generator: Print Product Labels & Order Barcode Label (A4, Thermal/Roll, Letter) 900+ · 4.5★ (74) wp.org #15 ↑1 1 too low 15 Easy Google Maps by Supsystic – Custom Markers, Clustering & Map Themes 20K+ · 4.6★ (251) wp.org #24 9 too low 16 morkva UA Shipping – Nova Poshta, Ukrposhta, Rozetka, Nova Global 1K+ · 4.9★ (29) wp.org #13 3 too high 17 MZ Mindbody API 100+ · 5.0★ (10) wp.org #14 ↓1 3 too high 18 Printcart Store – Web to Print Product Designer for WooCommerce 60+ · 4.1★ (12) wp.org #22 ↑1 4 too low 19 Qikink Print On Demand and DropShipping 1K+ · 4.5★ (2) wp.org #11 8 too high 20 3D Print Pricing Calculator 50+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #17 ↓3 3 too high 21 eBook Crafter – Convert Posts to PDF eBooks, Ready to Print 100+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #20 ↓1 1 too high 22 WDOnline Print All for WooCommerce 20+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #16 6 too high 23 W WP Print Friendly 500+ · 3.5★ (2) wp.org #10 13 too high 24 Print PDF Generator and Publisher 40+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #21 ↓1 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.