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

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 “publishing”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 14 of the top 20. 3 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

EDU Results Publishing – Student Result Management shows at wp.org #7 but places #22 on merit, a gap of 15 places. Its 60+ 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

Schedule Post Changes With PublishPress Future: Unpublish, Delete, Change Status, Trash, Change Categories places #7 on merit, 4.5★ from 172 reviews, but shows at wp.org #15. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin signals wp.org

The Events Calendar 600K+ · 4.2★ (2461) wp.org #1 2

PublishPress Checklists: Pre-Publishing Approval Checklist – Validate Post Requirements 3K+ · 5.0★ (24) thin reviews wp.org #2 3

Akismet Anti-spam: Spam Protection 5M+ · 4.7★ (1187) wp.org #6 ↓2 3 too low 4

Elementor Website Builder – more than just a page builder 10M+ · 4.5★ (7323) not PHP-currentheavy footprint wp.org #8 ↑2 4 too low 5

AF Companion – Starter Sites, Speed Booster & Growth Suite for Professional Publishing 10K+ · 4.9★ (34) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #5 ↑1 6

Real Testimonials – Testimonial Slider, Collect Customer Reviews and Video Testimonials 40K+ · 4.7★ (226) wp.org #13 ↓4 7 too low 7

Schedule Post Changes With PublishPress Future: Unpublish, Delete, Change Status, Trash, Change Categories 100K+ · 4.5★ (172) wp.org #15 ↓1 8 too low 8

PublishPress Planner – Editorial Calendar, Marketing Content, Kanban Board 6K+ · 4.9★ (178) wp.org #16 8 too low 9

Easy Post Submission – Frontend Posting, Guest Publishing & Submit Content for WordPress 4K+ · 4.5★ (6) thin reviews wp.org #3 6 too high 10

Public Post Preview 100K+ · 4.6★ (79) wp.org #14 ↑1 4 too low 11

Create 6K+ · 4.3★ (25) wp.org #9 ↑4 2 too high 12

Co-Authors, Multiple Authors and Guest Authors in an Author Box with PublishPress Authors 20K+ · 4.9★ (114) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #17 ↑4 5 too low 13

Social Media Auto Poster – Schedule & Publish to Buffer 7K+ · 4.5★ (125) wp.org #24 ↓6 11 too low 14

Redirection for Contact Form 7 200K+ · 4.7★ (275) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #21 7 too low 15

Bit Social – Social Media Auto Poster and Scheduler 6K+ · 4.5★ (36) wp.org #18 ↓2 3 too low 16 T Tilda-publishing 700+ · 3.4★ (5) thin reviewslow rating, top placement wp.org #4 ↑1 12 too high 17

CF7 Apps – Addons for Contact Form 7 (Honeypot, Database, Redirection, Webhook, etc.) 300K+ · 3.8★ (135) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #19 2 too low 18

Gutenberg 400K+ · 2.1★ (3888) wp.org #22 4 too low 19

WebSub (FKA. PubSubHubbub) 100K+ · 5.0★ (6) host-installed base thin reviews wp.org #11 8 too high 20

Verge3D Publishing and E-Commerce 400+ · 4.0★ (4) thin reviews wp.org #10 ↓2 10 too high 21

Extendify 500K+ · 4.7★ (10) host-installed base thin reviews wp.org #20 ↓3 1 too high 22

EDU Results Publishing – Student Result Management 60+ · 5.0★ (1) thin reviews wp.org #7 15 too high 23 S Skyword Publishing API 500+ · 5.0★ (1) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews wp.org #12 11 too high 24

Adaptify SEO One-Click Publishing 500+ · 0.0★ (0) thin reviews wp.org #23 ↓4 1 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.