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

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 “replication”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 15 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

GRT Ticket shows at wp.org #9 but places #19 on merit, a gap of 10 places. Its — 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

Element Pack Addons for Elementor – MCP & AI-Ready Elementor Widgets, Elementor Templates, Elementor Addons places #4 on merit, 4.7★ from 284 reviews, but shows at wp.org #13. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Redis Object Cache 500K+ · 4.5★ (179) wp.org #1 2 Prime Slider – Hero Slider, Carousel, WooCommerce & Post Slider Elementor Addons 100K+ · 4.5★ (82) wp.org #4 2 too low 3 bunny.net – WordPress CDN Plugin 10K+ · 3.1★ (22) wp.org #2 1 too high 4 Element Pack Addons for Elementor – MCP & AI-Ready Elementor Widgets, Elementor Templates, Elementor Addons 100K+ · 4.7★ (284) wp.org #13 9 too low 5 WP Admin Audit 1K+ · 3.7★ (6) wp.org #3 2 too high 6 WPO365 | MICROSOFT 365 GRAPH MAILER 10K+ · 5.0★ (40) wp.org #19 ↑1 13 too low 7 Longer Permalinks 8K+ · 5.0★ (18) wp.org #16 9 too low 8 Native PHP Sessions 10K+ · 4.9★ (16) wp.org #17 9 too low 9 FlyWP Helper – Page Cache, Page Optimization, Emails for FlyWP Server Control Panel 4K+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #5 4 too high 10 EasyFonts – Host Google Fonts Locally, Fast & Auto-Optimize, GDPR Compliant 1K+ · 5.0★ (6) wp.org #18 8 too low 11 H HyperDB 10+ · 4.1★ (14) wp.org #21 10 too low 12 E Easy Demo Import for Omega Themes 400+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #6 6 too high 13 Kuvarssoft Continuity — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #8 5 too high 14 VeravalOnline Failover Post Sync with DNS and IP — · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #7 7 too high 15 Simple Payment 30+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #22 7 too low 16 Garrett County Planning Tool (GCPT) – Public Health and Population Health Data and Planning Tool 10+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #14 2 too high 17 Smart One Click Setup – Complete Demo Import & Export 100+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #10 7 too high 18 OptiCache 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #11 7 too high 19 GRT Ticket — · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #9 10 too high 20 DSmirror — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #15 5 too high 21 The Code Registry – Code Backup & Intelligence — · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #12 9 too high 22 P Primary Key Fixer 200+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #23 1 too low 23 Init User Engine – Gamified, Fast, Frontend-First 30+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #24 1 too low 24 Post Replicator 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #20 ↓1 4 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.