Plugin Pulse Beta
← Rankings

wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “random number”

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 “random number”, we and wp.org disagree on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 15 of the top 20. 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

Generate Random Orders For WooCommerce shows at wp.org #10 but places #22 on merit, a gap of 12 places. Its 100+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 3 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

FakerPress places #11 on merit, 4.9★ from 205 reviews, but shows at wp.org #22. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Sequential Order Number for WooCommerce 50K+ · 4.9★ (146) wp.org #2 ↑1 1 too low 2 Forminator Forms – Contact Form, Payment Form & Custom Form Builder 600K+ · 4.8★ (2143) wp.org #6 ↓1 4 too low 3 Email Encoder – Protect Email Addresses and Phone Numbers 90K+ · 4.9★ (94) wp.org #5 ↑1 2 too low 4 Random Content 3K+ · 4.8★ (35) wp.org #4 5 A Random Number 700+ · 3.7★ (6) wp.org #1 4 too high 6 Quiz Maker by AYS 20K+ · 4.9★ (601) wp.org #11 ↑4 5 too low 7 Smash Balloon Social Photo Feed – Easy Social Feeds Plugin 1M+ · 4.9★ (4358) wp.org #12 ↓1 5 too low 8 Click to Chat – HoliThemes 600K+ · 4.8★ (131) wp.org #8 9 All-In-One Security (AIOS) – Security and Firewall 1M+ · 4.7★ (1720) wp.org #13 4 too low 10 Custom Order Numbers for WooCommerce 20K+ · 4.2★ (25) wp.org #3 ↓1 7 too high 11 FakerPress 10K+ · 4.9★ (205) wp.org #22 ↑1 11 too low 12 PDF Invoices & Packing Slips for WooCommerce 300K+ · 5.0★ (1865) wp.org #19 7 too low 13 Drag and Drop Multiple File Upload for Contact Form 7 60K+ · 4.8★ (94) wp.org #18 ↑2 5 too low 14 AutomatorWP – No-Code Workflow Automation, Integration & Webhooks Plugin, now with AI 6K+ · 4.8★ (202) wp.org #21 ↑3 7 too low 15 Serial Numbers – Ultimate License Manager for Selling, Licensing & Securely Delivering Digital Content with WooCommerce 1K+ · 4.7★ (78) wp.org #16 1 too low 16 Like Button Rating ♥ LikeBtn 3K+ · 4.4★ (273) wp.org #20 ↓3 4 too low 17 Random Posts and Pages Widget 1K+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #7 10 too high 18 WP Random Post Thumbnails 1K+ · 5.0★ (8) wp.org #15 ↓3 3 too high 19 DFX Random User IDs 200+ · 4.0★ (5) wp.org #9 10 too high 20 Random Post on Refresh 500+ · 5.0★ (6) wp.org #17 ↑1 3 too high 21 Simple Login Captcha 10K+ · 3.9★ (17) wp.org #24 3 too low 22 Generate Random Orders For WooCommerce 100+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #10 12 too high 23 InDesign Random Quotes Widgets 10+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #23 24 WP Counter Up – Animated Number Counter & Milestone Showcase 1K+ · 4.0★ (5) wp.org #14 10 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.