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

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 “snapshot”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 12 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

Site Extensions Snapshot shows at wp.org #2 but places #18 on merit, a gap of 16 places. Its 40+ 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

Post SMTP – Complete Email Delivery and SMTP Solution with Email Logs, Alerts, Backup SMTP & Mobile App places #11 on merit, 4.7★ from 528 reviews, but shows at wp.org #22. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 WP Reset 300K+ · 4.8★ (1014) wp.org #1 2 Export All URLs 50K+ · 4.6★ (94) wp.org #4 ↓1 2 too low 3 BrikPanel: WooCommerce Dashboard & Analytics, Abandoned Cart Recovery, Order Export, Inventory Management & Bulk Editor 1K+ · 5.0★ (55) wp.org #3 ↑1 4 Advanced WordPress Reset – Debug, Recover & Reset WP 10K+ · 4.9★ (1233) wp.org #11 ↓4 7 too low 5 Smart COD for WooCommerce 30K+ · 4.6★ (52) wp.org #5 6 Security Plugin, Firewall & Malware Scanner with Auto Removal 40K+ · 4.8★ (397) wp.org #14 8 too low 7 Insights from Google PageSpeed 10K+ · 4.8★ (28) wp.org #6 1 too high 8 Hide My WP Ghost – Security & Firewall 100K+ · 4.5★ (373) wp.org #15 7 too low 9 User Admin Simplifier 10K+ · 5.0★ (31) wp.org #10 ↓3 1 too low 10 NinjaScanner – Virus & Malware scan 40K+ · 4.0★ (36) wp.org #7 ↓2 3 too high 11 Post SMTP – Complete Email Delivery and SMTP Solution with Email Logs, Alerts, Backup SMTP & Mobile App 300K+ · 4.7★ (528) wp.org #22 ↓11 11 too low 12 HandL UTM Grabber / Tracker 10K+ · 4.8★ (146) wp.org #21 ↓3 9 too low 13 Easy MCP AI – Connect Claude to WordPress: MCP Server for ChatGPT & AI Agents 30K+ · 4.9★ (16) wp.org #9 ↑3 4 too high 14 Database Reset 10K+ · 4.5★ (77) wp.org #19 ↓4 5 too low 15 Patchstack – WordPress & Plugins Security 100K+ · 4.8★ (62) wp.org #12 ↓4 3 too high 16 Quttera ThreatSign – Web Malware Scanner for WordPress 10K+ · 3.9★ (47) wp.org #13 ↓4 3 too high 17 WP-Memory-Usage 10K+ · 4.5★ (21) wp.org #17 ↓7 18 Site Extensions Snapshot 40+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #2 16 too high 19 InstaWP Connect – 1-click WP Staging & Migration 40K+ · 4.5★ (12) wp.org #24 ↓4 5 too low 20 phpinfo() WP – Site Health, PHP Compatibility & Server Audit 3K+ · 4.5★ (8) wp.org #20 ↓4 21 Cowboy MCP – Free MCP Server with Undo for Claude & ChatGPT 1K+ · 5.0★ (5) wp.org #18 ↑1 3 too high 22 Squeeze – Browser-Based Image Compression & WebP Converter (No API, No Limits) 3K+ · 5.0★ (6) wp.org #23 1 too low 23 Internet Archive Wayback Machine Link Fixer 1K+ · 3.8★ (8) wp.org #16 ↓4 7 too high 24 SnapShots 20+ · 3.7★ (3) wp.org #8 16 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.