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

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 “repost”, we and wp.org disagree on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 9 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

Solr Search for WordPress shows at wp.org #17 but places #24 on merit, a gap of 7 places. Its 100+ installs carry it up the search order; its 4.0★ average from 2 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

RevivePress – Keep your Old Content Evergreen places #5 on merit, 4.6★ from 115 reviews, but shows at wp.org #12. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Blog2Social: Social Media Auto Post & Scheduler 50K+ · 4.5★ (2104) wp.org #3 ↓1 2 too low 2 Social Media Auto Poster – Schedule & Publish to Buffer 7K+ · 4.5★ (124) wp.org #5 3 too low 3 NextScripts: Social Networks Auto-Poster 20K+ · 3.3★ (617) wp.org #4 1 too low 4 Re-post Activity for BuddyPress 80+ · 4.2★ (5) wp.org #2 ↑1 2 too high 5 RevivePress – Keep your Old Content Evergreen 4K+ · 4.6★ (115) wp.org #12 ↑2 7 too low 6 Social Engine 600+ · 4.8★ (30) wp.org #9 3 too low 7 ATmosphere 300+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #1 6 too high 8 IndieWeb 600+ · 5.0★ (6) wp.org #7 1 too high 9 Social Media Auto Poster – Schedule & Publish to Social Post Flow 200+ · 4.6★ (9) wp.org #6 3 too high 10 Social Media Auto Poster – Schedule & Publish to Hootsuite 200+ · 4.1★ (15) wp.org #11 1 too low 11 SweepWidget – Giveaway, Contest, Sweepstakes, Competition & Photo Contest Plugin 100+ · 4.3★ (14) wp.org #14 ↓1 3 too low 12 ActivityPub 6K+ · 4.9★ (40) wp.org #23 11 too low 13 Ultimate Watermark – Image Watermark, Image Protection & Bulk Watermarking 1K+ · 3.3★ (11) wp.org #10 3 too high 14 Social Integration for BlueSky 700+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #8 6 too high 15 I IndieBlocks 100+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #13 ↓1 2 too high 16 FETCHUB – AI RSS Feed Aggregator & Translator 20+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #18 2 too low 17 Social Publisher 10+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #15 2 too high 18 BlueFeed 50+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #16 2 too high 19 Milyutin Code Article Reposter for VK — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #19 20 Xiaochen Content Copy Controls — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #20 21 Kotaqx Poster — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #21 22 Vemoro SocialFeed — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #22 23 Post Kinds for IndieWeb in Block Themes — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #24 1 too low 24 Solr Search for WordPress 100+ · 4.0★ (2) wp.org #17 7 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.