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← Rankings

wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “state blocker”

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 “state blocker”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 14 of the top 20. 2 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

Registration Email Blocker shows at wp.org #4 but places #16 on merit, a gap of 12 places. Its 100+ 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

WP-Members Membership Plugin places #10 on merit, 4.6★ from 272 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 Advanced IP Blocker 3K+ · 4.9★ (27) wp.org #1 2 WP Statistics – Simple, privacy-friendly Google Analytics alternative 500K+ · 4.1★ (759) wp.org #3 1 too low 3 IP Location Block 10K+ · 4.5★ (35) wp.org #2 ↓1 1 too high 4 Complianz GDPR/CCPA Cookie Consent Banner 1M+ · 4.7★ (1668) wp.org #5 ↓1 1 too low 5 Ad Inserter – Ad Manager & AdSense Ads 300K+ · 4.9★ (2433) wp.org #8 ↑2 3 too low 6 Real Cookie Banner: GDPR & ePrivacy Cookie Consent 100K+ · 4.9★ (492) wp.org #6 ↓1 7 GDPR Cookie Compliance – Cookie Banner, Cookie Consent, Cookie Notice for CCPA, EU Cookie Law 300K+ · 4.6★ (205) wp.org #11 ↓5 4 too low 8 Pixel Manager for WooCommerce – Conversion Tracking, Google Ads, GA4, TikTok, Dynamic Remarketing 40K+ · 4.9★ (399) wp.org #19 ↑1 11 too low 9 PixelYourSite – Your smart PIXEL (TAG) & API Manager 400K+ · 4.3★ (281) wp.org #16 ↓2 7 too low 10 WP-Members Membership Plugin 50K+ · 4.6★ (272) wp.org #24 14 too low 11 FAZ Cookie Manager 3K+ · 5.0★ (30) wp.org #14 ↓2 3 too low 12 Termly – GDPR/CCPA Cookie Consent Banner 80K+ · 3.6★ (204) wp.org #23 ↓6 11 too low 13 Fraud Prevention For WooCommerce and EDD 4K+ · 3.7★ (23) wp.org #10 ↓2 3 too high 14 WPEPP – Essential Security, Password Protect & Login Page Customizer 3K+ · 4.1★ (19) wp.org #18 ↓3 4 too low 15 BitFire Security – Firewall, Malware Scanner, Bot Blocker, Login Protection 300+ · 5.0★ (8) wp.org #12 ↓3 3 too high 16 Registration Email Blocker 100+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #4 ↑9 12 too high 17 Optimal State – Advanced Optimization, Performance & Security Suite 30+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #21 ↑1 4 too low 18 Invalid Traffic Blocker 40+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #7 11 too high 19 Geo Blocker – Control Site Access by Region and IP 1K+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #9 ↓2 10 too high 20 WooCommerce Tax (formerly WooCommerce Shipping & Tax) 500K+ · 2.0★ (105) wp.org #22 ↓3 2 too low 21 MUTE – Contact Form Spam Blocker Without CAPTCHA 10+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #20 1 too high 22 DevDome Country Blocker: Geo Blocking, GeoIP Block 300+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #13 ↑3 9 too high 23 DevDome Bot Protection: Bot Blocker and AI Crawler Control 200+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #15 8 too high 24 ConsentOwl — Cookie Consent & Tracker Blocker 300+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #17 ↓6 7 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.