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

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 “tagging”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 11 of the top 20.

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 the install base is organic or host-pushed, and its risk of being pulled.

Ranked above its merit

Tagging shows at wp.org #4 but places #15 on merit, a gap of 11 places. Its 500+ 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

Envira Gallery – Image Photo Gallery, Albums, Video Gallery, Slideshows & More places #10 on merit, 4.7★ from 1597 reviews, but shows at wp.org #22. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Widgets for Google Reviews 1M+ · 4.9★ (2667) wp.org #1 ↑1 2 PixelYourSite – Your smart PIXEL (TAG) & API Manager 400K+ · 4.3★ (281) wp.org #2 ↑1 3 Customer Reviews for WooCommerce 80K+ · 4.8★ (1539) wp.org #6 3 too low 4 FooGallery Photo Gallery : Image, Video & Masonry Galleries 100K+ · 4.8★ (995) wp.org #9 ↓1 5 too low 5 Embed Plus for YouTube Gallery, Livestream and Lazy Loading with Facades 100K+ · 4.6★ (572) wp.org #10 ↑1 5 too low 6 WPZOOM Social Feed Widget & Block 50K+ · 4.3★ (51) wp.org #5 1 too high 7 Google for WooCommerce 800K+ · 2.7★ (268) wp.org #3 ↓2 4 too high 8 Kit (formerly ConvertKit) – Email Newsletter, Email Marketing, Membership, Subscribers and Landing Pages 40K+ · 4.8★ (90) wp.org #12 ↑2 4 too low 9 Mailgun for WordPress 80K+ · 3.8★ (49) wp.org #7 2 too high 10 Envira Gallery – Image Photo Gallery, Albums, Video Gallery, Slideshows & More 100K+ · 4.7★ (1597) wp.org #22 ↓5 12 too low 11 FluentCRM – Email Newsletter, Automation, Email Marketing, Email Campaigns, Optins, Leads, and CRM Solution 80K+ · 4.8★ (250) wp.org #18 7 too low 12 Logos Reftagger 10K+ · 4.8★ (15) wp.org #15 3 too low 13 Active Campaign & Contact Form 7 3K+ · 4.4★ (18) wp.org #13 14 Stape Conversion Tracking 10K+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #8 ↑1 6 too high 15 Tagging 500+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #4 11 too high 16 Unbounce Landing Pages 10K+ · 3.2★ (11) wp.org #14 ↑2 2 too high 17 Klaviyo 100K+ · 2.8★ (24) wp.org #17 18 Zhanzhangb Indexing Submission for Baidu 2K+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #16 ↑2 2 too high 19 Auto Tag Creator – Automatic Tags for Posts and WooCommerce Products 1K+ · 4.5★ (4) wp.org #11 ↓1 8 too high 20 Comment Mention 100+ · 5.0★ (5) wp.org #24 ↓2 4 too low 21 S Smart Tag Insert 200+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #19 2 too high 22 UseStrict’s Calendly Embedder 2K+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #21 1 too high 23 ESV CrossReference Tool 500+ · 4.0★ (6) wp.org #23 ↓2 24 Rectus Auto Tagging 30+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #20 4 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.