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

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 planner”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 14 of the top 20.

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

RP 4U (Maps & Route Planner) shows at wp.org #9 but places #24 on merit, a gap of 15 places. Its 10+ 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

CartFlows – Funnel Builder & Checkout Plugin for WooCommerce places #10 on merit, 4.8★ from 517 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 Yoast SEO – Advanced SEO with real-time guidance and built-in AI 10M+ · 4.8★ (27821) wp.org #1 2 Order Delivery Date And Time 1K+ · 4.6★ (19) wp.org #2 3 Eventin – Events Calendar, Tickets, Registration, Booking & WooCommerce 10K+ · 4.7★ (413) wp.org #7 ↑1 4 too low 4 Simple Event Planner 1K+ · 4.3★ (23) wp.org #3 1 too high 5 WP Recipe Maker 50K+ · 5.0★ (356) wp.org #12 ↑3 7 too low 6 Shelf Planner Inventory Management for WooCommerce 100+ · 4.7★ (16) wp.org #4 ↑1 2 too high 7 Xagio SEO & AEO – AI SEO for Google Rankings & AI Visibility 10K+ · 4.9★ (51) wp.org #11 ↑1 4 too low 8 Cost Calculator Builder 20K+ · 4.5★ (393) wp.org #16 ↑5 8 too low 9 Easy Appointment Booking & Scheduling Plugin – Webba Booking Calendar 2K+ · 4.9★ (159) wp.org #15 ↑2 6 too low 10 CartFlows – Funnel Builder & Checkout Plugin for WooCommerce 200K+ · 4.8★ (517) wp.org #21 ↑3 11 too low 11 PublishPress Capabilities: User Role Access Control, Admin Area Permissions 90K+ · 4.7★ (143) wp.org #17 ↓4 6 too low 12 Metricool – Social media and site statistics 90K+ · 4.4★ (23) wp.org #10 ↑1 2 too high 13 PublishPress Blocks – Block Controls, Block Visibility, Block Permissions 20K+ · 4.7★ (204) wp.org #23 10 too low 14 PublishPress Revisions: Duplicate Posts, Submit, Approve and Schedule Content Changes 10K+ · 4.6★ (66) wp.org #19 ↑1 5 too low 15 WP Delicious – Recipe Plugin for Food Bloggers (formerly Delicious Recipes) 4K+ · 4.9★ (72) wp.org #20 ↓2 5 too low 16 Time Slot – Booking and Appointment System 100+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #6 ↑1 10 too high 17 Stachethemes Seat Planner Lite 80+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #5 ↑1 12 too high 18 Comment Experience by Progress Planner 500+ · 3.5★ (13) wp.org #8 ↑1 10 too high 19 Event Genius – Event Calendar, Event Registration, and Attendee Management 600+ · 4.8★ (17) wp.org #18 1 too high 20 Sugar Calendar – Events Calendar, Event Tickets, and Events Management Platform 10K+ · 4.5★ (24) wp.org #24 ↓5 4 too low 21 AutoWP – AI Content Writer & Rewriter 900+ · 3.8★ (15) wp.org #14 ↑2 7 too high 22 Calendar.online / Kalender.digital – Plugin 2K+ · 4.4★ (7) wp.org #13 ↑1 9 too high 23 Termin-Kalender 500+ · 4.2★ (9) wp.org #22 1 too high 24 RP 4U (Maps & Route Planner) 10+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #9 ↑1 15 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.