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

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 “split order”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 18 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

Split Order by category for Woocommerce shows at wp.org #5 but places #18 on merit, a gap of 13 places. Its 10+ 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

PrettyLinks – Affiliate Link Management, URL Shortener, Link Cloaking, Tracking & Branded Short Links places #4 on merit, 4.8★ from 1322 reviews, but shows at wp.org #18. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Order Export & Order Import for WooCommerce 50K+ · 4.7★ (337) wp.org #1 2 Split Test For Elementor 3K+ · 4.4★ (24) wp.org #2 3 Order Splitter for WooCommerce 300+ · 4.7★ (70) wp.org #7 ↑3 4 too low 4 PrettyLinks – Affiliate Link Management, URL Shortener, Link Cloaking, Tracking & Branded Short Links 200K+ · 4.8★ (1322) wp.org #18 ↓1 14 too low 5 Split Pay – Stripe Connect Split Payments & Multi-Vendor Marketplace for WooCommerce & FluentCart 100+ · 5.0★ (21) wp.org #8 ↓1 3 too low 6 Advanced Shipment Tracking for WooCommerce 70K+ · 4.5★ (355) wp.org #11 5 too low 7 Duplicator – Backups & Migration Plugin – Cloud Backups, Scheduled Backups, & More 1M+ · 4.9★ (4940) wp.org #15 8 too low 8 WC Order Split 20+ · 5.0★ (5) wp.org #4 4 too high 9 UpsellWP – Upsell and Related Products Offers for WooCommerce 5K+ · 4.9★ (149) wp.org #13 ↑1 4 too low 10 Weight Based Shipping for WooCommerce 50K+ · 4.6★ (83) wp.org #16 6 too low 11 Order Splitter for WooCommerce 300+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #3 8 too high 12 CartFlows – Funnel Builder & Checkout Plugin for WooCommerce 200K+ · 4.8★ (517) wp.org #20 8 too low 13 Kadence Blocks — Page Builder Toolkit for Gutenberg Editor 600K+ · 4.8★ (333) wp.org #23 10 too low 14 Flexible Table Block 40K+ · 4.9★ (34) wp.org #24 10 too low 15 MultiStep Checkout for WooCommerce 3K+ · 4.8★ (55) wp.org #19 4 too low 16 Ultimate Order Combination 300+ · 3.8★ (9) wp.org #10 ↓1 6 too high 17 Split Email Providers 10+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #14 ↓1 3 too high 18 Split Order by category for Woocommerce 10+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #5 13 too high 19 WC Backorder Split 40+ · 3.7★ (3) wp.org #6 13 too high 20 Virtuaria PagBank Split 20+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #17 ↑1 3 too high 21 Klarna Order Management for WooCommerce 10K+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #9 ↓1 12 too high 22 eCommerce Shipping Dashboard by UPS for WooCommerce 1K+ · 3.5★ (6) wp.org #21 ↑1 1 too high 23 Tamara Checkout 3K+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #22 ↑1 1 too high 24 Split Order on checkout pro for Woocommerce 10+ · 2.0★ (4) wp.org #12 12 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.