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

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 “sslverify”, we and wp.org disagree on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 18 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

CloudScale SEO AI Optimizer shows at wp.org #6 but places #19 on merit, a gap of 13 places. Its — 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

OAuth Single Sign On – SSO (OAuth Client) places #2 on merit, 4.9★ from 327 reviews, but shows at wp.org #20. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 SSL Zen — SSL Certificate Installer & HTTPS Redirects 9K+ · 4.9★ (665) wp.org #18 ↓1 17 too low 2 OAuth Single Sign On – SSO (OAuth Client) 6K+ · 4.9★ (327) wp.org #20 18 too low 3 Social Media Auto Poster – Schedule & Publish to Buffer 7K+ · 4.5★ (125) wp.org #19 16 too low 4 Rimoq 20+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #1 3 too high 5 Comments – GraphComment | AI-Moderated Comment System 400+ · 4.7★ (30) wp.org #17 ↓1 12 too low 6 Yandex Metrica 20K+ · 3.8★ (33) wp.org #9 ↓1 3 too low 7 {eac}SoftwareRegistry Distribution SDK — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #2 5 too high 8 Importify – AI Dropshipping for WooCommerce 1K+ · 4.5★ (27) wp.org #21 ↓3 13 too low 9 ZoloBlocks – Advanced Gutenberg Blocks, Website Builder & Page Design Toolkit 1K+ · 5.0★ (12) wp.org #16 ↓1 7 too low 10 Billplz for WooCommerce 6K+ · 4.9★ (8) wp.org #10 ↓1 11 DELUCKS SEO 300+ · 4.9★ (17) wp.org #22 ↑1 11 too low 12 BaseWeb AI Chat & Forms to MAX — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #3 9 too high 13 Foreground CAPI Health Check — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #4 9 too high 14 Garden Gnome Package 4K+ · 4.2★ (5) wp.org #11 ↓1 3 too high 15 MIPL Multistore Sync for WooCommerce. Sync Products, Stock and Orders. 200+ · 4.4★ (7) wp.org #14 1 too high 16 CranSEO — · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #5 11 too high 17 Jinx Fast-Cache — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #7 ↓1 10 too high 18 License For Envato 9K+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #12 ↓1 6 too high 19 CloudScale SEO AI Optimizer — · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #6 ↑6 13 too high 20 SysRadar — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #8 ↓1 12 too high 21 Open Source Event Calendar 100+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #15 ↑6 6 too high 22 Etibot Makale Botu 30+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #24 2 too low 23 L localhost2host.docker.internal — · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #13 10 too high 24 NMI for WooCommerce 70+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #23 ↓1 1 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.