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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “time ago”

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 “time ago”, we and wp.org disagree on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 12 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

Weblix Analytics – Real-Time Stats & Visitor Counter shows at wp.org #12 but places #22 on merit, a gap of 10 places. Its 100+ 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

WP Last Modified Info places #7 on merit, 4.9★ from 855 reviews, but shows at wp.org #15. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Backup and Staging by WP Time Capsule 10K+ · 4.0★ (128) wp.org #2 1 too low 2 Events Manager – Calendar, Bookings, Tickets, Appointments and more! 60K+ · 4.2★ (551) wp.org #3 1 too low 3 Meks Time Ago 10K+ · 4.3★ (9) wp.org #1 2 too high 4 W3 Total Cache 900K+ · 4.4★ (5420) wp.org #9 5 too low 5 Simple History – Track, Log, and Audit WordPress Changes 300K+ · 4.9★ (491) wp.org #10 5 too low 6 WP-Sweep 100K+ · 4.7★ (138) wp.org #8 2 too low 7 WP Last Modified Info 40K+ · 4.9★ (855) wp.org #15 8 too low 8 Analytify – Google Analytics 4 Tracking and Reporting in WordPress 20K+ · 4.7★ (488) wp.org #14 6 too low 9 BrikPanel: WooCommerce Dashboard & Analytics, Abandoned Cart Recovery, Order Export, Inventory Management & Bulk Editor 1K+ · 5.0★ (55) wp.org #7 2 too high 10 Years Ago Today 100+ · 5.0★ (6) wp.org #4 6 too high 11 Users Registration Date – Sortable Users Column 3K+ · 5.0★ (6) wp.org #6 5 too high 12 WC Price History 5K+ · 5.0★ (27) wp.org #13 1 too low 13 OttoKit: All-in-One Automation Platform 90K+ · 4.9★ (125) wp.org #19 6 too low 14 Nepali Date Utilities 1K+ · 4.7★ (3) wp.org #5 9 too high 15 SALERT – Social Proof Notifications & Live Sales Popup 8K+ · 3.9★ (16) wp.org #11 4 too high 16 s2Member – Excellent for All Kinds of Memberships, Content Restriction Paywalls & Member Access Subscriptions 8K+ · 4.1★ (234) wp.org #22 6 too low 17 Advanced Post Block – Display Your Posts Exactly How You Want 10K+ · 4.2★ (17) wp.org #16 1 too high 18 Q qTranslate X Cleanup and WPML Import 800+ · 3.5★ (26) wp.org #23 5 too low 19 NextGenThemes jsDelivr CDN 300+ · 5.0★ (6) wp.org #21 2 too low 20 Missed Schedule Post Publisher 6K+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #20 21 Generate Random Orders For WooCommerce 100+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #24 3 too low 22 Weblix Analytics – Real-Time Stats & Visitor Counter 100+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #12 10 too high 23 Init Chat Engine – Real-Time, Community, Extensible 50+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #18 5 too high 24 WP-RelativeDate 100+ · 3.0★ (2) wp.org #17 7 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.