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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “site migration”

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 “site migration”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 9 of the top 20. 4 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

Demi – One Click Demo Import, Backup & Site Migration shows at wp.org #13 but places #24 on merit, a gap of 11 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.

Buried gem

Yoast SEO – Advanced SEO with real-time guidance and built-in AI places #12 on merit, 4.8★ from 27820 reviews, but shows at wp.org #24. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Migrate Guru – Site Migration & Cloning 200K+ · 4.9★ (1641) wp.org #1 2 All-in-One WP Migration and Backup 5M+ · 4.5★ (7669) wp.org #2 3 UpdraftPlus: WP Backup & Migration Plugin 4M+ · 4.8★ (8660) wp.org #3 4 Admin and Site Enhancements (ASE) 200K+ · 5.0★ (424) wp.org #5 1 too low 5 Duplicator – Backups & Migration Plugin – Cloud Backups, Scheduled Backups, & More 1M+ · 4.9★ (4940) wp.org #4 1 too high 6 WPvivid — Backup, Migration & Staging 900K+ · 4.9★ (1552) wp.org #6 7 Backup Migration 80K+ · 4.9★ (1333) wp.org #8 ↓1 1 too low 8 WP STAGING – Backups & Restore, Migration & Clone Plugin – Cloud Backups, Scheduled Backups 100K+ · 4.8★ (2466) wp.org #9 1 too low 9 Site Reviews 60K+ · 4.9★ (372) wp.org #7 ↑1 2 too high 10 SEOPress – AI SEO Plugin & On-site SEO 300K+ · 4.8★ (1259) wp.org #16 6 too low 11 NS Cloner – Site Cloner and Multisite Duplicator 6K+ · 4.7★ (279) wp.org #14 3 too low 12 Yoast SEO – Advanced SEO with real-time guidance and built-in AI 10M+ · 4.8★ (27820) wp.org #24 12 too low 13 Prime Mover – Backup and Migration 10K+ · 5.0★ (140) wp.org #21 8 too low 14 Simply Static – The Static Site Generator 30K+ · 4.5★ (194) wp.org #22 8 too low 15 WP Migrate Lite – Migration Made Easy 200K+ · 4.2★ (318) wp.org #15 16 WebToffee WP Backup and Migration 5K+ · 4.5★ (49) wp.org #11 5 too high 17 Free 1-Click WordPress Migration 300+ · 4.5★ (39) wp.org #18 1 too low 18 LitExtension – Automated Store Migration & Import 1K+ · 4.8★ (50) wp.org #23 5 too low 19 Pressable Automated Migration 4K+ · 5.0★ (10) wp.org #12 7 too high 20 DreamHost Automated Migration 20K+ · 4.6★ (5) wp.org #10 10 too high 21 Pantheon Migrations 1K+ · 5.0★ (7) wp.org #17 4 too high 22 TemplateSpare – 1000+ WordPress Starter Templates & Full Site Migration Tool | 1-Click Import/Export & No-Code Builder 10K+ · 4.3★ (6) wp.org #19 3 too high 23 Tutor LMS – Migration Tool 1K+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #20 3 too high 24 Demi – One Click Demo Import, Backup & Site Migration 300+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #13 11 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.