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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “template export”

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 “template export”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 10 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 the install base is organic or host-pushed, and its risk of being pulled.

Ranked above its merit

Export/Import Media – CSV Media Library Import & Export shows at wp.org #16 but places #24 on merit, a gap of 8 places. Its 1K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 3.7★ average from 3 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Yoast SEO – Advanced SEO with real-time guidance and built-in AI places #11 on merit, 4.8★ from 27821 reviews, but shows at wp.org #23. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 ElementsKit Elementor Addons – Advanced Widgets & Templates Addons for Elementor 1M+ · 4.9★ (2051) wp.org #1 2 WP All Export – Drag & Drop Export to Any Custom CSV, XML & Excel 100K+ · 4.5★ (415) wp.org #2 3 Premium Addons for Elementor – AI-Ready Elementor Addons, Widgets & Templates 600K+ · 4.9★ (1680) wp.org #3 4 Starter Templates: AI-Powered Website Templates for Elementor & Gutenberg 1M+ · 4.9★ (4755) wp.org #4 5 Order Export & Order Import for WooCommerce 50K+ · 4.7★ (337) wp.org #5 6 Import and export users and customers 70K+ · 4.7★ (259) wp.org #6 7 Product Import Export for WooCommerce – CSV Product Importer & Exporter 80K+ · 4.6★ (413) wp.org #7 8 WPForms – AI Form Builder for WordPress – Contact Forms, Payment Forms, Survey Form, Quiz & More 5M+ · 4.8★ (14387) wp.org #12 4 too low 9 Mailonix – Email Template Customizer for WooCommerce 20K+ · 4.6★ (105) wp.org #10 1 too low 10 MetForm – Contact Form, Survey, Quiz, Conditional Forms, Form Templates & Custom Form Builder for Elementor 500K+ · 4.7★ (509) wp.org #13 3 too low 11 Yoast SEO – Advanced SEO with real-time guidance and built-in AI 10M+ · 4.8★ (27821) wp.org #23 ↓1 12 too low 12 Complianz GDPR/CCPA Cookie Consent Banner 1M+ · 4.7★ (1667) wp.org #17 ↑6 5 too low 13 WP All Export – Product Export Add-On for WooCommerce 10K+ · 4.5★ (24) wp.org #9 4 too high 14 Custom Field Template 30K+ · 4.0★ (24) wp.org #8 6 too high 15 Email Templates Customizer and Designer for WordPress and WooCommerce 20K+ · 4.6★ (133) wp.org #20 ↓1 5 too low 16 Export Themes 2K+ · 4.9★ (13) wp.org #11 5 too high 17 Export WordPress Pages to Static HTML & PDF — Static Site Export 4K+ · 3.8★ (51) wp.org #19 ↓1 2 too low 18 Kadence Starter Templates — Predesigned Website Templates 200K+ · 4.3★ (19) wp.org #14 4 too high 19 Post Export Import with Media 1K+ · 4.5★ (8) wp.org #15 4 too high 20 Template Kit – Import 400K+ · 3.4★ (16) wp.org #18 ↓1 2 too high 21 Options for Block Themes 300+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #21 ↓1 22 Magic Export & Import 200+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #22 ↓1 23 Simple Export to Markdown 300+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #24 1 too low 24 Export/Import Media – CSV Media Library Import & Export 1K+ · 3.7★ (3) wp.org #16 8 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.