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

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 “thirdparty”, we and wp.org disagree on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 11 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

Contentlockr shows at wp.org #2 but places #9 on merit, a gap of 7 places. Its — 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

Product Table for WooCommerce places #2 on merit, 4.8★ from 295 reviews, but shows at wp.org #9. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 GDPR Cookie Compliance – Cookie Banner, Cookie Consent, Cookie Notice for CCPA, EU Cookie Law 300K+ · 4.6★ (205) wp.org #3 2 too low 2 Product Table for WooCommerce 5K+ · 4.8★ (295) wp.org #9 ↓1 7 too low 3 My WP Customize Admin/Frontend 8K+ · 4.3★ (16) wp.org #6 ↓1 3 too low 4 Splash Sync 100+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #1 3 too high 5 Min Max Control – Min Max Quantity & Step Control for WooCommerce 10K+ · 4.7★ (79) wp.org #10 5 too low 6 ATR Server Status 100+ · 4.3★ (11) wp.org #5 ↓1 1 too high 7 Back In Stock Notifier for WooCommerce | WooCommerce Waitlist Pro 20K+ · 4.7★ (122) wp.org #12 ↓1 5 too low 8 neo Rename – AI Media Renamer for renaming images & alt text with batch processing 200+ · 5.0★ (7) wp.org #8 ↓1 9 Contentlockr — · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #2 7 too high 10 Lead Form Data Collection to CRM 400+ · 4.0★ (46) wp.org #16 ↓1 6 too low 11 Abientot – Appointment Booking — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #4 7 too high 12 neo Alt – AI Alt Text Generator for images with bulk processing – Free and No API Key Required 200+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #7 ↓1 5 too high 13 Vtiger CRM Integration for WordPress 200+ · 3.4★ (12) wp.org #15 ↓1 2 too low 14 Chessgame Shizzle 100+ · 4.7★ (3) wp.org #14 ↓1 15 Zoho Integration for WordPress 200+ · 2.9★ (9) wp.org #13 ↓1 2 too high 16 Doliconnect 30+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #22 ↓1 6 too low 17 neo Replace – Simple replacement using drag & drop 90+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #11 ↓2 6 too high 18 neoMotion – Creative stop-motion editor for neoDraw 20+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #17 ↓1 1 too high 19 Salesforce Integration for WordPress 30+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #23 ↓1 4 too low 20 neo Duplicate – Copy images with one click! 50+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #18 ↓1 2 too high 21 ActiveCampaign Newsletter Subscription 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #24 ↓1 3 too low 22 neoAnimate – Impressive animation editor for neoDraw 10+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #20 ↓1 2 too high 23 neo Optimize – Resize and cache images – the original remains untouched 30+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #21 ↓1 2 too high 24 Bangla Converter (Bijoy To Unicode, Unicode To Bijoy) 80+ · 1.0★ (1) wp.org #19 ↓1 5 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.