Plugin Pulse Beta
← Rankings

wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “system info”

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 “system info”, we and wp.org disagree on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 15 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

TuriTop Booking System shows at wp.org #9 but places #22 on merit, a gap of 13 places. Its 500+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 2 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Booking for Appointments and Events Calendar – Amelia places #9 on merit, 4.6★ from 793 reviews, but shows at wp.org #21. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 WP Booking System – Booking Calendar 10K+ · 4.9★ (344) wp.org #3 2 too low 2 Elementor Website Builder – more than just a page builder 10M+ · 4.5★ (7323) wp.org #5 ↑1 3 too low 3 atec System Info 200+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #1 2 too high 4 Version Info – Server Health Monitor, PHP & MySQL Version Display, Environment Indicators 10K+ · 5.0★ (15) wp.org #4 5 Server Info – System Health & Diagnostics Suite 3K+ · 3.8★ (12) wp.org #2 3 too high 6 Online Scheduling and Appointment Booking System – Bookly 60K+ · 4.4★ (586) wp.org #11 ↑3 5 too low 7 Wordfence Security – Firewall, Malware Scan, and Login Security 5M+ · 4.7★ (5039) wp.org #14 ↑4 7 too low 8 LiteSpeed Cache 7M+ · 4.8★ (2778) wp.org #16 ↑5 8 too low 9 Booking for Appointments and Events Calendar – Amelia 90K+ · 4.6★ (793) wp.org #21 12 too low 10 atec Cache Info 1K+ · 5.0★ (10) wp.org #6 ↓1 4 too high 11 Disqus Comment System 30K+ · 2.7★ (219) wp.org #8 3 too high 12 Fluent Support – Helpdesk & Customer Support Ticket System 10K+ · 4.6★ (69) wp.org #15 ↑8 3 too low 13 Tutor LMS – eLearning and online course solution 100K+ · 4.4★ (590) wp.org #20 ↓3 7 too low 14 System Dashboard 900+ · 4.9★ (16) wp.org #7 7 too high 15 Events Manager – Calendar, Bookings, Tickets, Appointments and more! 60K+ · 4.2★ (551) wp.org #24 9 too low 16 WP Plugin Info Card – Showcase Beautiful Plugin, Theme, and GitHub Cards Anywhere 400+ · 5.0★ (23) wp.org #19 ↓7 3 too low 17 Dashboard Widgets Suite 4K+ · 4.9★ (38) wp.org #23 6 too low 18 WP-CRM System – Manage Clients and Projects 700+ · 3.9★ (15) wp.org #17 ↑2 1 too high 19 Booking System Trafft 400+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #10 ↑3 9 too high 20 Library Management System 200+ · 4.4★ (14) wp.org #18 ↑4 2 too high 21 CL WP Info 90+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #12 ↑4 9 too high 22 TuriTop Booking System 500+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #9 13 too high 23 Display Server Info 100+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #13 ↑2 10 too high 24 Helpdesk Support Ticket System for WooCommerce 200+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #22 2 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.