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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “status indicator”

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 “status indicator”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 16 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

HPOS Status Indicator for WooCommerce shows at wp.org #5 but places #19 on merit, a gap of 14 places. Its 20+ installs carry it up the search order; its 0.0★ average from 0 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

MoreConvert Wishlist for WooCommerce places #10 on merit, 4.9★ from 120 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 Extended Post Status 1K+ · 4.5★ (11) wp.org #1 2 Business Hours Indicator 7K+ · 4.9★ (60) wp.org #2 3 User Registration & Membership – Free & Paid Memberships, Subscriptions, Content Restriction, User Profile, Custom User Registration & Login Builder 50K+ · 4.8★ (832) wp.org #6 3 too low 4 Version Info – Server Health Monitor, PHP & MySQL Version Display, Environment Indicators 10K+ · 5.0★ (15) wp.org #4 5 Better Messages – Chat Rooms, Group Chat, Private Messages & AI Chat Bots 10K+ · 4.8★ (142) wp.org #9 4 too low 6 HTML5 Audio Player – The Ultimate No-Code Podcast, MP3 & Audio Player 10K+ · 4.6★ (169) wp.org #11 ↑2 5 too low 7 WP-Memory-Usage 10K+ · 4.5★ (21) wp.org #12 5 too low 8 Online Active Users 2K+ · 4.7★ (51) wp.org #16 ↑1 8 too low 9 ATUM WooCommerce Inventory Management and Stock Tracking 10K+ · 4.7★ (128) wp.org #15 6 too low 10 MoreConvert Wishlist for WooCommerce 8K+ · 4.9★ (120) wp.org #24 14 too low 11 Project Manager – AI Powered Project Management, Task Management, Kanban Board & Time Tracker 5K+ · 3.8★ (187) wp.org #18 ↑1 7 too low 12 Back In Stock Notifier for WooCommerce | WooCommerce Waitlist Pro 20K+ · 4.7★ (122) wp.org #19 7 too low 13 Online Indicator For Twitch 100+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #3 10 too high 14 Disable WP Notification 10K+ · 4.3★ (12) wp.org #17 ↑1 3 too low 15 Turnkey bbPress by WeaverTheme 300+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #7 8 too high 16 Magical Shop Builder – WooCommerce Template Builder for Elementor | Shop, Cart, Checkout & Product Page Builder 3K+ · 5.0★ (9) wp.org #22 ↑2 6 too low 17 Display During Conditional Shortcode 200+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #10 7 too high 18 PluggInsight – Maintenance Status 10+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #8 10 too high 19 HPOS Status Indicator for WooCommerce 20+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #5 14 too high 20 Clone / Duplicate Orders for WooCommerce 1K+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #13 ↓2 7 too high 21 Compromise Scanner for wp2shell 3K+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #20 ↓4 1 too high 22 WP Consent API 200K+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #14 8 too high 23 WP Maintenance Mode & Site Under Construction 3K+ · 3.5★ (4) wp.org #21 ↓1 2 too high 24 365i Environment Indicator 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #23 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.