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

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 “solver”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 13 of the top 20.

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 the install base is organic or host-pushed, and its risk of being pulled.

Ranked above its merit

GemBooking – Appointment Booking, Booking Calendar & Reservations shows at wp.org #6 but places #11 on merit, a gap of 5 places. Its 200+ 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

MyRewards places #4 on merit, 4.7★ from 58 reviews, but shows at wp.org #13. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Xpro Theme Builder For Elementor – FREE 20K+ · 5.0★ (14) wp.org #1 2 Xpro Addons — 150+ Widgets for Elementor 40K+ · 4.4★ (28) wp.org #2 3 BotBlocker Security – Complete security platform 3K+ · 5.0★ (11) wp.org #4 1 too low 4 MyRewards 2K+ · 4.7★ (58) wp.org #13 9 too low 5 WP Cassify 900+ · 5.0★ (16) wp.org #12 7 too low 6 Friendly Captcha for WordPress 10K+ · 3.9★ (18) wp.org #14 8 too low 7 Individual Use Solver for WooCommerce Coupons – Coupon Categories 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #3 4 too high 8 Solver Live Chat — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #5 ↑1 3 too high 9 SpamKill – No-CAPTCHA, No-Signup Anti-Spam & Spam Protection for Comments & Reviews for WooCommerce 90+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #7 2 too high 10 OCA para WooCommerce 100+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #17 7 too low 11 GemBooking – Appointment Booking, Booking Calendar & Reservations 200+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #6 ↓1 5 too high 12 WPBuddy – Get Reliable WordPress Support — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #8 4 too high 13 Starline Conflict Inspector – WP Debug Log, Error Inspector & Plugin Conflict Solver — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #9 4 too high 14 T TapHuman – Gamified CAPTCHA & Bot Protection — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #10 4 too high 15 Comments Anywhere for Elementor – Social Comments, Likes & More — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #11 4 too high 16 BROSH CRM — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #16 17 Privacy CAPTCHA for Cap 100+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #19 2 too low 18 ARCA (ex AFIP) para WooCommerce 100+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #15 3 too high 19 Photo Collage 30+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #20 1 too low 20 Front Door Hero — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #21 1 too low 21 Chatvox – AI Chatbot for Live Support & Lead Generation — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #22 ↓1 1 too low 22 Raptcha 10+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #18 4 too high 23 F fley Decisions — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #23 ↓1 24 E Entscheidungshilfe free — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #24 ↓1

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.