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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “task management”

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

HR Management Lite shows at wp.org #14 but places #24 on merit, a gap of 10 places. Its 200+ installs carry it up the search order; its 3.5★ average from 2 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Fluent Forms – Customizable Contact Forms, Survey, Quiz, & Conversational Form Builder places #12 on merit, 4.8★ from 807 reviews, but shows at wp.org #17. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 FluentBoards – Project Management, Task Management, Goal Tracking, Kanban Board, and, Team Collaboration 6K+ · 5.0★ (25) wp.org #1 2 Project Manager – AI Powered Project Management, Task Management, Kanban Board & Time Tracker 5K+ · 3.8★ (187) wp.org #2 3 Yoast SEO – Advanced SEO with real-time guidance and built-in AI 10M+ · 4.8★ (27821) wp.org #6 ↑2 3 too low 4 MainWP Dashboard: Self-hosted WordPress Management for Agencies 20K+ · 4.9★ (2354) wp.org #8 ↑2 4 too low 5 Wordfence Security – Firewall, Malware Scan, and Login Security 5M+ · 4.7★ (5039) wp.org #7 ↓1 2 too low 6 Code Snippets 1M+ · 4.7★ (510) wp.org #5 1 too high 7 WPVibe – MCP Server for WordPress, works with Claude, ChatGPT & other AI MCP agents 100K+ · 5.0★ (195) wp.org #11 ↓2 4 too low 8 Term Management Tools 10K+ · 4.9★ (76) wp.org #9 ↓2 1 too low 9 LazyTasks – Project & Task Management with Collaboration, Kanban and Gantt Chart 90+ · 5.0★ (6) wp.org #3 6 too high 10 BackWPup – WordPress Backup & Restore Plugin 400K+ · 4.0★ (1323) wp.org #10 ↑2 11 Taskbuilder – Project Management & Task Management Tool With Kanban Board 700+ · 4.7★ (7) wp.org #4 7 too high 12 Fluent Forms – Customizable Contact Forms, Survey, Quiz, & Conversational Form Builder 800K+ · 4.8★ (807) wp.org #17 ↓2 5 too low 13 UpdraftPlus: WP Backup & Migration Plugin 4M+ · 4.8★ (8706) wp.org #23 10 too low 14 Points Management System For Gamification, Ranks, Badges, and Loyalty Rewards Program – myCred 10K+ · 4.6★ (472) wp.org #15 ↓10 1 too low 15 WP Webhooks – Automate repetitive tasks by creating powerful automation workflows directly within WordPress 20K+ · 4.7★ (55) wp.org #20 ↓1 5 too low 16 KiviCare – Clinic & Patient Management System (EHR) 1K+ · 3.6★ (23) wp.org #16 ↓2 17 Zoho Flow – No-Code Workflow Automation 5K+ · 5.0★ (13) wp.org #24 7 too low 18 Remote Website Management by Watchful 3K+ · 5.0★ (6) wp.org #22 ↓2 4 too low 19 EventAdmin – Volunteer Management 50+ · 5.0★ (5) wp.org #21 2 too low 20 Kadence Central – Site Management, Backups, Security, and Reporting 30K+ · 4.2★ (5) wp.org #19 ↓1 1 too high 21 Kanbanz 2K+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #12 9 too high 22 Glow: maintenance & support management for agencies 800+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #13 ↓2 9 too high 23 TodoX — Project & Task Management for WordPress 10+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #18 ↓1 5 too high 24 HR Management Lite 200+ · 3.5★ (2) wp.org #14 ↓1 10 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.