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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “sort order items”

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 “sort order items”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 13 of the top 20. 3 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

Export Order Items for WooCommerce shows at wp.org #6 but places #15 on merit, a gap of 9 places. Its 1K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 4.7★ average from 9 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Admin Columns places #11 on merit, 4.9★ from 1652 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 Post Types Order 600K+ · 4.5★ (296) wp.org #1 2 Simple Custom Post Order 300K+ · 4.8★ (588) wp.org #2 3 Advanced Order Export For WooCommerce 100K+ · 5.0★ (350) wp.org #4 1 too low 4 Folders – Unlimited Folders to Organize Media Library Folder, Pages, Posts, File Manager 90K+ · 5.0★ (1525) wp.org #8 4 too low 5 Custom Taxonomy Order 50K+ · 4.8★ (96) wp.org #5 6 Forminator Forms – Contact Form, Payment Form & Custom Form Builder 600K+ · 4.8★ (2144) wp.org #10 4 too low 7 WP Sort Order 6K+ · 4.5★ (17) wp.org #3 4 too high 8 Modula Image Gallery – Photo Grid & Video Gallery 100K+ · 4.7★ (616) wp.org #12 4 too low 9 Relevanssi – A Better Search 100K+ · 4.8★ (406) wp.org #14 5 too low 10 Intuitive Custom Post Order 400K+ · 4.4★ (139) wp.org #9 1 too high 11 Admin Columns 100K+ · 4.9★ (1652) wp.org #24 13 too low 12 WP Term Order 6K+ · 4.8★ (20) wp.org #7 5 too high 13 FileBird – WordPress Media Library Folders & File Manager 200K+ · 4.7★ (1125) wp.org #22 9 too low 14 B2BKing — Ultimate WooCommerce B2B and Wholesale Plugin — Wholesale Prices, Bulk Order Form & More 10K+ · 4.9★ (109) wp.org #17 3 too low 15 Export Order Items for WooCommerce 1K+ · 4.7★ (9) wp.org #6 9 too high 16 Phone Orders for WooCommerce 1K+ · 5.0★ (32) wp.org #21 5 too low 17 Trakoo – Orders Tracking for WooCommerce 10K+ · 4.5★ (58) wp.org #15 2 too high 18 I Order Terms 1K+ · 5.0★ (11) wp.org #13 5 too high 19 RD Order Modifier for WooCommerce 300+ · 5.0★ (6) wp.org #11 8 too high 20 N Ni WooCommerce Custom Order Status 2K+ · 4.1★ (16) wp.org #16 4 too high 21 Smart Product Sort 30+ · 4.5★ (2) wp.org #18 3 too high 22 P Post Terms Order – per Post based 2K+ · 3.0★ (7) wp.org #20 2 too high 23 Sort Products in Cart & Order Lite for WooCommerce 60+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #23 24 B BASE Item List 700+ · 4.0★ (2) wp.org #19 5 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.