Plugin Pulse Beta
← Rankings

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

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 “show”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 11 of the top 20. 1 plugin is 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

Show IDs by Echo shows at wp.org #5 but places #19 on merit, a gap of 14 places. Its 2K+ 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

Rich Showcase for Google Reviews places #5 on merit, 4.9★ from 1623 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 Show Current Template 100K+ · 5.0★ (71) wp.org #1 2 Show Pages IDs 10K+ · 5.0★ (103) wp.org #2 ↑1 3 JSM Show Post Metadata 10K+ · 5.0★ (12) wp.org #4 1 too low 4 Weaver Show Posts 5K+ · 5.0★ (7) wp.org #3 ↓1 1 too high 5 Rich Showcase for Google Reviews 100K+ · 4.9★ (1623) wp.org #18 ↑6 13 too low 6 Simply Show Hooks 1K+ · 5.0★ (63) wp.org #9 3 too low 7 Show modified Date in admin lists 6K+ · 4.9★ (32) wp.org #7 ↑1 8 Site Kit by Google – Analytics, Search Console, AdSense, Speed 5M+ · 4.2★ (1012) wp.org #15 ↑1 7 too low 9 Show Stock Status for WooCommerce 1K+ · 4.8★ (29) wp.org #10 1 too low 10 Omnibus — show the lowest price 10K+ · 4.1★ (51) wp.org #17 7 too low 11 Show only lowest prices in variable products for WooCommerce 6K+ · 4.8★ (28) wp.org #12 1 too low 12 Show Support Ribbon 300+ · 5.0★ (11) wp.org #13 1 too low 13 Image Source Control Lite – Show Image Credits and Captions 3K+ · 4.6★ (42) wp.org #22 ↓1 9 too low 14 WP-ShowHide 9K+ · 4.2★ (43) wp.org #21 ↓1 7 too low 15 Weaver Show Sliders 900+ · 4.5★ (6) wp.org #8 ↓2 7 too high 16 Show Pages URL List 1K+ · 4.4★ (8) wp.org #11 5 too high 17 JSM Show User Metadata 3K+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #6 ↑1 11 too high 18 Show Me The Cookies 400+ · 4.8★ (4) wp.org #14 4 too high 19 Show IDs by Echo 2K+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #5 14 too high 20 Show Fit File 100+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #24 ↓1 4 too low 21 JSM Show Order Metadata for WooCommerce HPOS 700+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #16 ↓1 5 too high 22 S Show Visitor IP 300+ · 3.6★ (5) wp.org #20 ↓1 2 too high 23 WPC Show Single Variations for WooCommerce 1K+ · 3.3★ (11) wp.org #19 ↓1 4 too high 24 Show Product Sales Count for WooCommerce 200+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #23 ↓1 1 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.