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

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

Force Admin Color Scheme shows at wp.org #4 but places #21 on merit, a gap of 17 places. Its 500+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 2 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Smash Balloon Social Photo Feed – Easy Social Feeds Plugin places #10 on merit, 4.9★ from 4358 reviews, but shows at wp.org #18. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 ECS – Ele Custom Skin for Elementor 100K+ · 4.6★ (117) wp.org #2 1 too low 2 The SEO Framework – Fast, Automated, Effortless. 200K+ · 4.9★ (380) wp.org #3 ↑1 1 too low 3 Default Admin Color Scheme 800+ · 4.7★ (9) wp.org #1 2 too high 4 Custom Login Page Customizer 80K+ · 4.8★ (410) wp.org #6 ↓1 2 too low 5 Website Builder by SeedProd — Theme Builder, Landing Page Builder, Coming Soon Page, Maintenance Mode 600K+ · 4.9★ (4699) wp.org #11 ↑1 6 too low 6 Button visually impaired 10K+ · 4.9★ (27) wp.org #5 ↑2 1 too high 7 Redux Framework 900K+ · 4.4★ (273) wp.org #7 ↓2 8 Ninja Tables – Easy Data Table Builder 70K+ · 4.6★ (472) wp.org #12 ↓4 4 too low 9 Interactive Image Map Plugin – Draw Attention 20K+ · 4.9★ (114) wp.org #9 10 Smash Balloon Social Photo Feed – Easy Social Feeds Plugin 1M+ · 4.9★ (4358) wp.org #18 ↓4 8 too low 11 Maps Widget for Google Maps 20K+ · 4.6★ (512) wp.org #17 ↑1 6 too low 12 White Label – WordPress Custom Admin, Custom Login Page, and Custom Dashboard 10K+ · 5.0★ (21) wp.org #8 ↑4 4 too high 13 Reviews and Rating – Google Reviews 20K+ · 4.9★ (184) wp.org #10 3 too high 14 QuadMenu – Mega Menu 10K+ · 4.5★ (270) wp.org #22 8 too low 15 Branda – White Label & Branding, Free Login Page Customizer 10K+ · 4.5★ (30) wp.org #13 2 too high 16 WP Maps – Google Maps, OpenStreetMap, Mapbox, Store Locator with Search, Filters & Listings 60K+ · 4.3★ (122) wp.org #14 ↑1 2 too high 17 Minify HTML 10K+ · 4.7★ (33) wp.org #19 2 too low 18 Kaya QR Code Generator 10K+ · 4.4★ (38) wp.org #21 3 too low 19 Block Editor Colors 3K+ · 4.8★ (13) wp.org #15 ↑1 4 too high 20 Recipe Card Blocks Lite 10K+ · 4.8★ (20) wp.org #20 21 Force Admin Color Scheme 500+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #4 ↓1 17 too high 22 Contextual Adminbar Color 500+ · 5.0★ (8) wp.org #16 ↑1 6 too high 23 CodeColorer 1K+ · 4.9★ (11) wp.org #23 24 R Real Cookie Banner – Color schemes 100+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #24

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.