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

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 “strtolower”, we and wp.org disagree on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 9 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

Thanks Mail for Stripe shows at wp.org #3 but places #14 on merit, a gap of 11 places. Its 10+ 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

Internal Link Juicer: SEO Auto Linker for WordPress places #2 on merit, 4.7★ from 537 reviews, but shows at wp.org #7. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin signals wp.org

Nav Menu Roles 70K+ · 4.9★ (219) wp.org #5 ↑3 4 too low 2

Internal Link Juicer: SEO Auto Linker for WordPress 100K+ · 4.7★ (537) wp.org #7 ↓1 5 too low 3 M Make Filename Lowercase 1K+ · 4.8★ (4) thin reviews wp.org #1 2 too high 4

Slim SEO – AI SEO Plugin, Lightweight, Fast & Automated 70K+ · 4.7★ (136) wp.org #6 ↓1 2 too low 5

WP Console – WordPress PHP Console powered by PsySH 20K+ · 5.0★ (21) thin reviews wp.org #4 1 too high 6

Import and export users and customers 70K+ · 4.7★ (259) wp.org #9 ↓2 2 too low 8

Optimize Database after Deleting Revisions 60K+ · 4.7★ (181) wp.org #10 ↓1 2 too low 9

Seraphinite Accelerator 50K+ · 4.8★ (476) not PHP-current wp.org #12 3 too low 10

Smart Variations Images & Swatches for WooCommerce 1K+ · 4.7★ (142) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #11 1 too low 11

BackUpWordPress 80K+ · 4.7★ (1373) throws errorsnot PHP-currentclosure risk wp.org #16 5 too low 12

Hello Dolly For Your Song 40+ · 0.0★ (0) thin reviewslow rating, top placement wp.org #2 10 too high 13

StaffList 100+ · 4.9★ (21) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews wp.org #14 1 too low 14

Thanks Mail for Stripe 10+ · 0.0★ (0) thin reviewslow rating, top placement wp.org #3 11 too high 15 G GM Block Bots 800+ · 4.4★ (16) closure risk thin reviews wp.org #24 ↓1 9 too low 16

Tarot Card Oracle 100+ · 3.4★ (5) thin reviews wp.org #13 3 too high 17 M Media Placeholders 60+ · 5.0★ (2) closure risk thin reviews wp.org #22 ↓1 5 too low 18

Sendit.ma for WooCommerce 10+ · 0.0★ (0) thin reviews wp.org #17 ↑1 1 too high 19

HAPPY – Helpdesk Support Ticket System 10+ · 0.0★ (0) thin reviews wp.org #18 ↓1 1 too high 20

Fifteenth Labs Case Studies — · 0.0★ (0) thin reviews wp.org #20 ↓1 21

WpBom 50+ · 0.0★ (0) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews wp.org #15 6 too high 22

SiteNivo – Modular Site Toolkit — · 5.0★ (1) thin reviews wp.org #19 3 too high 23 G GE RSS Reader Widgets 100+ · 5.0★ (1) closure risk thin reviews wp.org #21 ↓1 2 too high 24 C Case-Insensitive Passwords 50+ · 1.0★ (1) closure risk thin reviews 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.