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

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 “stepped”, we and wp.org disagree 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

Stepped Content – Guide readers through content one step at a time shows at wp.org #1 but places #9 on merit, a gap of 8 places. Its 200+ 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 EasyCart: Shopping Cart and eCommerce Store places #7 on merit, 4.5★ from 206 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 wpDataTables – WordPress Data Table, Dynamic Tables & Table Charts Plugin 60K+ · 4.5★ (449) wp.org #3 ↑1 2 too low 2 Author Avatars List/Block 4K+ · 4.8★ (32) wp.org #2 3 Chartify – WordPress Chart Plugin 3K+ · 4.9★ (28) wp.org #5 ↓2 2 too low 4 SQL Chart Builder 500+ · 3.9★ (22) wp.org #4 ↑1 5 Min Max Step Quantity Limits Manager for WooCommerce 3K+ · 4.9★ (51) wp.org #7 2 too low 6 Tabby Responsive Tabs 10K+ · 4.9★ (144) wp.org #18 12 too low 7 WP EasyCart: Shopping Cart and eCommerce Store 3K+ · 4.5★ (206) wp.org #20 13 too low 8 Product Price History for WooCommerce 800+ · 5.0★ (9) wp.org #6 2 too high 9 Stepped Content – Guide readers through content one step at a time 200+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #1 8 too high 10 Sunshine Photo Cart – Client Photo Gallery & Photo Proofing for Photographers 1K+ · 4.7★ (138) wp.org #23 13 too low 11 Vimeotheque – Vimeo WordPress Plugin & Video Gallery 2K+ · 4.6★ (26) wp.org #19 8 too low 12 Mira LLM Optimizer 30+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #8 4 too high 13 Travelly – Tour & Travel Booking Manager for WooCommerce 1K+ · 4.8★ (45) wp.org #21 8 too low 14 Blaminhor Essentials – SEO, Cache, Backup, SMTP, Redirects, Broken Links, Cookie Banner, Hide Login & More 90+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #10 4 too high 15 SiaraShield 10+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #9 6 too high 16 Polski for WooCommerce 60+ · 4.8★ (10) wp.org #22 6 too low 17 Gutenberg Login Page Customizer – Custom Login, Login URL and Limit Attempts — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #11 6 too high 18 Layout Now — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #12 6 too high 19 Scobe Booking Lite — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #13 ↓2 6 too high 20 Grinner Blocks — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #14 ↓2 6 too high 21 EditRail — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #15 ↓2 6 too high 22 Pop3D Charts – 2D/3D Data Visualizer — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #16 ↓1 6 too high 23 Rahkar Toolkit — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #17 6 too high 24 AllTerrain Photo Editor – Crop, Resize, Paint & Photo Filters 10+ · 4.0★ (2) wp.org #24

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.