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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “reading time”

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 “reading time”, we agree with wp.org 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

Font Resize With Post Reading Time [GWE] shows at wp.org #7 but places #20 on merit, a gap of 13 places. Its 80+ 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

Essential Addons for Elementor – Popular Elementor Templates & Widgets places #9 on merit, 4.9★ from 4121 reviews, but shows at wp.org #20. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Reading Time WP 20K+ · 4.8★ (20) wp.org #1 2 Read Meter – Reading Time & Progress Bar 10K+ · 4.5★ (19) wp.org #2 3 Reading Position Indicator 800+ · 5.0★ (66) wp.org #6 3 too low 4 WP Reading Progress 3K+ · 5.0★ (19) wp.org #4 5 GTM4WP – A Google Tag Manager (GTM) plugin for WordPress 700K+ · 4.5★ (155) wp.org #10 5 too low 6 Worth The Read 3K+ · 4.3★ (27) wp.org #8 2 too low 7 Jetpack – WP Security, Backup, Speed, & Growth 3M+ · 3.7★ (2407) wp.org #16 ↑1 9 too low 8 MonsterInsights – Google Analytics Dashboard for WordPress (Website Stats Made Easy) 2M+ · 4.5★ (3151) wp.org #14 6 too low 9 Essential Addons for Elementor – Popular Elementor Templates & Widgets 1M+ · 4.9★ (4121) wp.org #20 11 too low 10 DearFlip – PDF Flipbook, 3D Flipbook, PDF embed, PDF viewer 200K+ · 4.9★ (191) wp.org #21 11 too low 11 Redis Object Cache 500K+ · 4.4★ (178) wp.org #17 ↓2 6 too low 12 Joli Table Of Contents 7K+ · 4.9★ (43) wp.org #18 6 too low 13 Tarot, Oracle cards, Tarot readings, Tarokina 300+ · 5.0★ (22) wp.org #19 6 too low 14 Reading Time 200+ · 3.7★ (3) wp.org #3 11 too high 15 WP Sessions Time Monitoring Full Automatic 500+ · 5.0★ (7) wp.org #13 2 too high 16 Advanced Post Block – Display Your Posts Exactly How You Want 10K+ · 4.2★ (17) wp.org #23 7 too low 17 Sam Reading Time 70+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #5 12 too high 18 Plover Kit – Blocks, Patterns, Responsive Layout and Gutenberg Editor Enhancements 3K+ · 4.2★ (5) wp.org #24 6 too low 19 MinuteRead – Reading Time for Posts 10+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #9 10 too high 20 Font Resize With Post Reading Time [GWE] 80+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #7 13 too high 21 Reading time by LavaDESIGN 60+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #11 10 too high 22 Init Reading Position – Remember, Return, Continue 100+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #12 10 too high 23 Reading Time Block 20+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #15 ↑1 8 too high 24 Blog Post Reading Time 100+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #22 2 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.