Plugin Pulse Beta
← Rankings

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

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 “therapist”, we and wp.org disagree on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 8 of the top 20. 5 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

RoarDev Doctor & Therapist Finder shows at wp.org #3 but places #11 on merit, a gap of 8 places. Its 10+ 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

Listdom: AI-powered Business Directory with Classifieds Ads Listings places #10 on merit, 4.9★ from 60 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 GeoDirectory – WP Business Directory Plugin and Classified Listings Directory 10K+ · 4.8★ (716) wp.org #2 1 too low 2 Easy Appointments 10K+ · 4.3★ (131) wp.org #1 1 too high 3 Simply Schedule Appointments 50K+ · 5.0★ (155) wp.org #4 1 too low 4 Business Directory Plugin – Easy Listing & Member Directories for WordPress 10K+ · 4.6★ (504) wp.org #7 3 too low 5 Appointment Booking Plugin – LatePoint | Calendar & Scheduling for WordPress 100K+ · 4.9★ (106) wp.org #6 1 too low 6 Easy Appointment Booking & Scheduling Plugin – Webba Booking Calendar 2K+ · 4.9★ (159) wp.org #5 1 too high 7 Appointment Bookings for Zoom GoogleMeet and more – Wappointment 1K+ · 4.7★ (50) wp.org #9 2 too low 8 Online Booking & Scheduling Calendar by vcita 1K+ · 3.9★ (117) wp.org #8 9 MotoPress Appointment Booking 2K+ · 4.5★ (21) wp.org #11 2 too low 10 Listdom: AI-powered Business Directory with Classifieds Ads Listings 1K+ · 4.9★ (60) wp.org #21 11 too low 11 RoarDev Doctor & Therapist Finder 10+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #3 8 too high 12 Booktics – Appointment Booking Calendar for Service Businesses 800+ · 4.2★ (13) wp.org #10 2 too high 13 TrueBooker – Appointment Booking and Scheduler System 600+ · 5.0★ (15) wp.org #17 ↓1 4 too low 14 Hydra Booking — Appointment Scheduling & Booking Calendar 2K+ · 4.4★ (9) wp.org #12 ↑1 2 too high 15 Rox Appointment Booking – Event, Calendar & Appointment Scheduling 2K+ · 5.0★ (6) wp.org #15 ↑3 16 MeetingHub – Appointment Booking & Meeting Scheduling for Zoom, Google Meet, Microsoft Teams, Webex, Jitsi 400+ · 4.8★ (13) wp.org #23 7 too low 17 Appointment Booking Plugin for WooCommerce | Online Booking Calendar & Service Manager 200+ · 4.4★ (11) wp.org #19 2 too low 18 Radius Booking – Appointment Booking Calendar & Scheduling for Services & Events 500+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #14 ↑1 4 too high 19 Schedulista – Online Scheduling 100+ · 3.5★ (4) wp.org #13 ↑1 6 too high 20 GemBooking – Appointment Booking, Booking Calendar & Reservations 200+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #16 ↓4 4 too high 21 Shore Booking Widget 3K+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #22 ↑2 1 too low 22 P PsyBooker – Calendar for Appointments 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #24 ↓1 2 too low 23 2ConnectMe – Video Chat, Screen Share & Stripe Payments 10+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #18 ↓1 5 too high 24 DirectoryPress – Business Directory And Classified Ad Listing 600+ · 3.0★ (2) 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.