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← Rankings

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

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 “seed”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 8 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

Smooth Custom Cursor shows at wp.org #5 but places #10 on merit, a gap of 5 places. Its 300+ installs carry it up the search order; its 0.0★ average from 0 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Website Builder by SeedProd — Theme Builder, Landing Page Builder, Coming Soon Page, Maintenance Mode 600K+ · 4.9★ (4699) wp.org #1 2 Seed Fonts 20K+ · 4.6★ (16) wp.org #2 3 Seed Social 6K+ · 4.9★ (11) wp.org #3 4 DoLogin Security 7K+ · 4.5★ (13) wp.org #4 5 EAN Barcode Generator for WooCommerce: UPC, ISBN & GTIN Inventory 10K+ · 4.9★ (56) wp.org #7 2 too low 6 Seed Buddhist Year 3K+ · 4.9★ (11) wp.org #6 ↓1 7 WP Helper Premium 1K+ · 3.6★ (8) wp.org #11 ↓1 4 too low 8 WRN Pricing Rules for WooCommerce 50+ · 4.3★ (6) wp.org #15 7 too low 9 Dummy Text Generator 100+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #8 1 too high 10 Smooth Custom Cursor 300+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #5 ↑1 5 too high 11 LandTech Extras for Elementor 80+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #10 ↓1 1 too high 12 Ultimate Classified Listings – Classifieds, Directory & Marketplace 40+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #12 ↓1 13 JennyStudio GEO Factory 20+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #9 ↑4 4 too high 14 Dummyra Content Seeder by Jayanta77 — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #13 ↓1 1 too high 15 Blog Content Automation – AI SEO autopilot for your blog 20+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #18 3 too low 16 GemBooking – Appointment Booking, Booking Calendar & Reservations 200+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #14 2 too high 17 Presswell Alt Text Generator 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #20 3 too low 18 BridgerPay Woocommerce 30+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #16 2 too high 19 Codesala SEO Content Engine 20+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #22 3 too low 20 QuantCDN 100+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #17 3 too high 21 EasyCommerce FakerPress – Dummy & Test Data Generator for EasyCommerce — · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #21 22 Improve SEO 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #19 3 too high 23 AI Soft – AI Auto Post Publisher Lite — · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #23

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.