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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “printable forms tool”

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 “printable forms tool”, we and wp.org disagree on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 6 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

GriffinForms – Contact Form and Form Builder shows at wp.org #13 but places #20 on merit, a gap of 7 places. Its 20+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 4 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Property Hive places #8 on merit, 4.9★ from 96 reviews, but shows at wp.org #12. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Events Manager – Calendar, Bookings, Tickets, Appointments and more! 60K+ · 4.2★ (551) wp.org #2 ↓1 1 too low 2 B BSK PDF Manager 7K+ · 4.5★ (46) wp.org #1 1 too high 3 Cost Calculator Builder 20K+ · 4.5★ (393) wp.org #5 ↑2 2 too low 4 WP Time Slots Booking Form 1K+ · 5.0★ (41) wp.org #3 ↓1 1 too high 5 weForms – Easy Drag & Drop Contact Form Builder For WordPress 10K+ · 4.5★ (111) wp.org #4 ↓1 1 too high 6 Uncanny Toolkit for LearnDash 20K+ · 4.8★ (105) wp.org #8 2 too low 7 SureCart – Ecommerce Made Easy For Selling Physical Products, Digital Downloads, Subscriptions, Donations, & Payments 80K+ · 4.8★ (288) wp.org #9 ↓3 2 too low 8 Property Hive 3K+ · 4.9★ (96) wp.org #12 ↓2 4 too low 9 EU Withdrawal and Legal Guarantee Compliance 1K+ · 5.0★ (17) wp.org #7 ↓2 2 too high 10 Masteriyo LMS – LMS Course Builder, Quizzes & Certificates 6K+ · 4.8★ (184) wp.org #11 1 too low 11 FluentCart A New Era of eCommerce – Faster, Lighter, and Simpler 9K+ · 4.5★ (46) wp.org #10 1 too high 12 HIPAA Compliant Forms with Drag’n’Drop HIPAA Form Builder. Sign HIPAA documents 400+ · 5.0★ (7) wp.org #6 ↓2 6 too high 13 WPSmartPay – Payment Forms, Invoices, Donations & Subscriptions 100+ · 4.7★ (18) wp.org #14 1 too low 14 EventPrime – Events Calendar, Bookings, Tickets & AI 7K+ · 4.4★ (85) wp.org #17 ↓5 3 too low 15 Contact List – Online Staff Directory & Address Book 1K+ · 4.8★ (19) wp.org #16 ↓3 1 too low 16 Web Directory plugin Free – AI powered 300+ · 4.1★ (20) wp.org #19 3 too low 17 Milo Subscriptions – Subscriptions for WooCommerce and Recurring Payments 200+ · 5.0★ (10) wp.org #23 ↓5 6 too low 18 Membership Plugin – Kadence Memberships 8K+ · 3.1★ (100) wp.org #21 ↓6 3 too low 19 PDF Invoice for WooCommerce + Drag and Drop Template Builder 500+ · 5.0★ (6) wp.org #18 ↓4 1 too high 20 GriffinForms – Contact Form and Form Builder 20+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #13 ↓2 7 too high 21 Cookies, Terms & Conditions Consent Log 100+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #15 ↓5 6 too high 22 Conformitico Recesso 54-bis for WooCommerce 50+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #20 ↓3 2 too high 23 AC’s Loan Calculator 400+ · 3.7★ (3) wp.org #22 1 too high 24 Spotrebiteľské práva pre WooCommerce 300+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #24 ↓8

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.