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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “tech updates”

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 “tech updates”, we agree with wp.org 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

The Tribal Plugin shows at wp.org #2 but places #18 on merit, a gap of 16 places. Its 700+ 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

Pixel Manager for WooCommerce – Conversion Tracking, Google Ads, GA4, TikTok, Dynamic Remarketing places #10 on merit, 4.9★ from 399 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 Backup Migration 80K+ · 4.9★ (1338) wp.org #1 2 CookieYes – Cookie Banner for Cookie Consent (Easy to setup GDPR/CCPA Compliant Cookie Notice) 1M+ · 4.8★ (3236) wp.org #5 3 too low 3 Smart Slider 3 800K+ · 4.9★ (1125) wp.org #8 5 too low 4 Gutenberg 400K+ · 2.1★ (3888) wp.org #3 1 too high 5 Cookiebot – Cookie Banner & Cookie Consent for GDPR, CCPA & Google Consent Mode 100K+ · 4.4★ (440) wp.org #9 4 too low 6 Schema & Structured Data for WP & AMP 100K+ · 4.5★ (252) wp.org #6 7 Poptin – Email Marketing Automation, Newsletter & Exit Pop Ups, Email Popups 20K+ · 4.9★ (701) wp.org #15 8 too low 8 PWA for WP – Progressive Web Apps Made Simple 10K+ · 4.6★ (230) wp.org #13 5 too low 9 Redirection for Contact Form 7 200K+ · 4.7★ (275) wp.org #10 1 too low 10 Pixel Manager for WooCommerce – Conversion Tracking, Google Ads, GA4, TikTok, Dynamic Remarketing 40K+ · 4.9★ (399) wp.org #22 12 too low 11 Variation Swatches for WooCommerce – Color, Image & Size Swatches 200K+ · 4.6★ (51) wp.org #12 1 too low 12 Cooked – Recipe Management 3K+ · 3.9★ (90) wp.org #11 1 too high 13 Featured Images in RSS for Mailchimp & More 20K+ · 4.3★ (113) wp.org #18 5 too low 14 Easy Table of Contents 600K+ · 4.4★ (221) wp.org #21 7 too low 15 Check & Log Email – Easy Email Testing & Mail logging 90K+ · 4.8★ (292) wp.org #20 5 too low 16 Ads.txt & App-ads.txt Manager for WordPress 2K+ · 4.8★ (48) wp.org #19 3 too low 17 Trinity Audio – Text to Speech AI audio player to convert content into audio 2K+ · 4.0★ (25) wp.org #23 6 too low 18 The Tribal Plugin 700+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #2 16 too high 19 Tech Vaseegrah 10+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #4 15 too high 20 Raptive Ads 6K+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #16 4 too high 21 Htr Tech Product Importer for WooCommerce 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #7 14 too high 22 seQura 1K+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #14 8 too high 23 eCommerce Companion 6K+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #17 6 too high 24 getLaw WP API Client 600+ · 5.0★ (1) 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.