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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “reservation calendar”

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 “reservation calendar”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 12 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

MotoPress Booking Calendar shows at wp.org #8 but places #22 on merit, a gap of 14 places. Its 200+ 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

Five Star Restaurant Reservations – WordPress Booking Plugin places #11 on merit, 4.7★ from 211 reviews, but shows at wp.org #17. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Booking Calendar 40K+ · 4.7★ (655) wp.org #1 2 WP Booking System – Booking Calendar 10K+ · 4.9★ (344) wp.org #2 3 Eventin – Event Calendar, Tickets, Registration, Booking & WooCommerce 10K+ · 4.7★ (400) wp.org #3 4 Event Booking Manager for WooCommerce – Sell Tickets, Event Registration, RSVP & Event Calendar 7K+ · 4.5★ (166) wp.org #4 5 Appointment Booking Plugin – LatePoint | Calendar & Scheduling for WordPress 100K+ · 4.9★ (101) wp.org #7 2 too low 6 Simply Schedule Appointments 50K+ · 5.0★ (155) wp.org #9 3 too low 7 Appointment Hour Booking – Booking Calendar 10K+ · 4.9★ (523) wp.org #12 5 too low 8 ReDi Restaurant Reservation – Instant Restaurant Booking & Table Reservation System 800+ · 4.5★ (27) wp.org #5 3 too high 9 Appointment Booking Calendar 1K+ · 4.2★ (92) wp.org #6 3 too high 10 Bus Ticket Booking with Seat Reservation 700+ · 4.9★ (41) wp.org #14 4 too low 11 Five Star Restaurant Reservations – WordPress Booking Plugin 10K+ · 4.7★ (211) wp.org #17 6 too low 12 Easy Appointment Booking & Scheduling Plugin – Webba Booking Calendar 2K+ · 4.9★ (156) wp.org #18 6 too low 13 Booking Calendar Contact Form 500+ · 3.6★ (32) wp.org #10 3 too high 14 Easy Booking – WooCommerce Booking & Reservation Plugin 4K+ · 4.7★ (63) wp.org #15 1 too low 15 Fluent Booking – The Ultimate Appointments Scheduling, Events Booking, Events Calendar Solution 20K+ · 4.7★ (46) wp.org #23 8 too low 16 Timetics – Appointment Booking Calendar & Scheduling 2K+ · 4.6★ (36) wp.org #22 6 too low 17 VikAppointments Services Booking Calendar 500+ · 5.0★ (10) wp.org #24 7 too low 18 Court Reservation – Manage Your Court Bookings Online 80+ · 5.0★ (10) wp.org #20 2 too low 19 FareHarbor for WordPress 9K+ · 4.3★ (4) wp.org #11 8 too high 20 BedBooking – Reservation System and Booking Calendar 200+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #13 7 too high 21 Rox Appointment Booking – Appointment Booking Scheduling Solution 1K+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #19 2 too high 22 MotoPress Booking Calendar 200+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #8 14 too high 23 C CP Reservation Calendar 10+ · 4.0★ (3) wp.org #16 7 too high 24 GemBooking – Appointment Booking, Booking Calendar & Reservations 200+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #21 3 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.