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

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 “specifications”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 8 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

International Telephone Input With Flags And Dial Codes shows at wp.org #9 but places #18 on merit, a gap of 9 places. Its 1K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 4.1★ average from 7 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Pricing Table by Supsystic – Responsive Pricing Plans & Comparison Tables places #7 on merit, 4.1★ from 288 reviews, but shows at wp.org #16. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 WooCommerce 7M+ · 4.5★ (4833) wp.org #1 2 HireZoot – Job Listings, Career Page & Recruitment Tool 30K+ · 4.8★ (194) wp.org #5 ↓1 3 too low 3 Product Specifications for Woocommerce 1K+ · 4.7★ (26) wp.org #2 1 too high 4 Ads.txt Manager 100K+ · 4.7★ (15) wp.org #4 ↑1 5 WebSub (FKA. PubSubHubbub) 100K+ · 5.0★ (6) wp.org #3 2 too high 6 H HTTP 410 (Gone) responses 4K+ · 4.6★ (21) wp.org #8 2 too low 7 Pricing Table by Supsystic – Responsive Pricing Plans & Comparison Tables 10K+ · 4.1★ (288) wp.org #16 9 too low 8 Multiple Columns for Gravity Forms 10K+ · 4.5★ (30) wp.org #6 ↑3 2 too high 9 AffiliateX – Amazon Affiliate Plugin, Product Boxes, Comparison Tables & Affiliate Link Tracking 9K+ · 4.5★ (35) wp.org #10 ↑4 1 too low 10 atec Cache Info 1K+ · 5.0★ (10) wp.org #7 ↓1 3 too high 11 Disable Comments 1M+ · 4.7★ (281) wp.org #19 ↓12 8 too low 12 Plus WebP or AVIF 5K+ · 4.6★ (26) wp.org #12 ↑1 13 Product Feed Manager for WooCommerce – RexFeed – Sell on 200+ Shopping Channels 10K+ · 4.8★ (256) wp.org #18 5 too low 14 atec Cache APCu 3K+ · 4.9★ (21) wp.org #15 ↑1 1 too low 15 Easy Accordion Block – Accordion, FAQ & Collapsible Content for the Block Editor 7K+ · 4.4★ (16) wp.org #14 ↑3 1 too high 16 Product Tabs for WooCommerce 10K+ · 4.7★ (69) wp.org #23 ↓2 7 too low 17 Weaver Show Posts 5K+ · 5.0★ (7) wp.org #13 ↓1 4 too high 18 International Telephone Input With Flags And Dial Codes 1K+ · 4.1★ (7) wp.org #9 ↑1 9 too high 19 RichText Extension 900+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #17 ↓2 2 too high 20 NodeInfo(2) 900+ · 4.0★ (1) wp.org #11 9 too high 21 Conekta Payment Gateway 2K+ · 3.5★ (6) wp.org #22 ↓3 1 too low 22 Nexi XPay 7K+ · 3.0★ (7) wp.org #20 2 too high 23 AI Discovery Files – llms.txt & AI Visibility 100+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #21 ↓3 2 too high 24 Tablentor – Smart Table Builder for Elementor 1K+ · 4.0★ (2) wp.org #24 ↓2

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.