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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “remote administration”

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 “remote administration”, we and wp.org disagree on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 10 of the top 20. 4 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

Comment Blacklist Updater shows at wp.org #13 but places #20 on merit, a gap of 7 places. Its 800+ installs carry it up the search order; its 4.8★ average from 4 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

All-In-One Security (AIOS) – Security and Firewall places #5 on merit, 4.7★ from 1720 reviews, but shows at wp.org #9. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 WP Data Access – App Builder for Tables, Forms, Dashboards, Charts & Maps 10K+ · 4.9★ (88) wp.org #2 ↑1 1 too low 2 WP Activity Log 300K+ · 4.7★ (490) wp.org #3 ↓2 1 too low 3 Featured Image from URL (FIFU) 60K+ · 4.6★ (264) wp.org #4 1 too low 4 Remote Website Management by Watchful 3K+ · 5.0★ (6) wp.org #1 3 too high 5 All-In-One Security (AIOS) – Security and Firewall 1M+ · 4.7★ (1720) wp.org #9 ↓2 4 too low 6 Advanced iFrame 40K+ · 4.4★ (54) wp.org #6 ↓1 7 Sucuri Security – Auditing, Malware Scanner and Security Hardening 600K+ · 4.2★ (386) wp.org #5 ↓1 2 too high 8 Easy Modal 7K+ · 4.4★ (124) wp.org #8 9 WPMasterToolKit (WPMTK) – All in one plugin 5K+ · 5.0★ (28) wp.org #7 ↓1 2 too high 10 CMP – Coming Soon & Maintenance Plugin by NiteoThemes 200K+ · 4.7★ (326) wp.org #14 ↑1 4 too low 11 Store Exporter – Export WooCommerce Products, Orders, Subscriptions, Customers 6K+ · 4.1★ (166) wp.org #11 ↓1 12 Core Framework 10K+ · 5.0★ (41) wp.org #12 ↓1 13 Image Aspect Ratio Crop Field for Advanced Custom Fields 20K+ · 4.8★ (26) wp.org #19 ↓1 6 too low 14 Disable Everything 30K+ · 5.0★ (6) wp.org #10 ↓1 4 too high 15 Awesome Support – WordPress HelpDesk & Support Plugin 6K+ · 3.5★ (194) wp.org #20 5 too low 16 The School Management – Education & Learning ERP 700+ · 4.5★ (15) wp.org #18 ↓1 2 too low 17 Message Bridge for Contact Form 7 and Telegram 10K+ · 4.3★ (22) wp.org #22 ↓3 5 too low 18 Page Visits Counter – Lite 5K+ · 4.0★ (7) wp.org #15 ↓2 3 too high 19 RSFirewall! 4K+ · 5.0★ (5) wp.org #21 2 too low 20 Comment Blacklist Updater 800+ · 4.8★ (4) wp.org #13 ↓1 7 too high 21 Admin Help Docs 600+ · 5.0★ (9) wp.org #24 ↓1 3 too low 22 aapanel WP Toolkit 1K+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #16 ↓2 6 too high 23 Checkout & Store Toolkit for WooCommerce 800+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #17 ↓1 6 too high 24 WP Supra – Maintenance & Support Utilities 200+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #23 ↓1 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.