wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “rex”
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 “rex”, we and wp.org disagree on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 4 of the top 16. 5 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.
Woody Code Snippets – Insert PHP, CSS, JS, and Header/Footer Scripts 50K+ · 4.5★ (221) not PHP-current
wp.org #4 3 too low 2 
Houzez Property Feed 1K+ · 4.7★ (11) thin reviews
wp.org #2 3 
Sync My Rex 20+ · 5.0★ (1) thin reviews
wp.org #1 2 too high 4 
Page Speed 200+ · 3.6★ (12) throws errorsnot PHP-currentclosure risk thin reviewsstale but ranked
wp.org #7 3 too low 5 W WHA Tours Core — · 0.0★ (0) thin reviewslow rating, top placement
wp.org #3 2 too high 6 
Block-a-saurus 100+ · 5.0★ (2) closure risk thin reviewsstale but ranked
wp.org #6 7 
RexPay Payment Gateway — · 5.0★ (1) closure risk thin reviewsstale but ranked
wp.org #5 2 too high 8 
Rex Ad Cards WP — · 0.0★ (0) closure risk thin reviewsstale but ranked
wp.org #8 9 S SDI Scarcity Timer — · 0.0★ (0) closure risk thin reviewsstale but ranked
wp.org #9 10 W WP Reroute Mandrill 10+ · 5.0★ (1) closure risk thin reviewsstale but ranked
wp.org #10 11 S Show User Level Content 10+ · 0.0★ (0) closure risk thin reviews
wp.org #16 5 too low 12 
WooLayout 10+ · 0.0★ (0) throws errorsnot PHP-currentclosure risk thin reviews
wp.org #11 1 too high 13 
Theme Helper 10+ · 0.0★ (0) throws errorsnot PHP-currentclosure risk thin reviews
wp.org #12 1 too high 14 V ViralRank™ — · 5.0★ (1) closure risk thin reviews
wp.org #15 1 too low 15 
Kripto Para Dönüştürücü ve Döviz Hesaplama 40+ · 3.5★ (2) closure risk thin reviews
wp.org #14 1 too high 16 R Responsive Table 300+ · 2.2★ (6) closure risk thin reviews
wp.org #13 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.