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

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 “times”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 9 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

Muslim Prayer Times shows at wp.org #9 but places #24 on merit, a gap of 15 places. Its 60+ 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

Forminator Forms – Contact Form, Payment Form & Custom Form Builder places #5 on merit, 4.8★ from 2143 reviews, but shows at wp.org #12. 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 Wordfence Security – Firewall, Malware Scan, and Login Security 5M+ · 4.7★ (5039) wp.org #2 3 WooCommerce 7M+ · 4.5★ (4833) wp.org #4 ↓1 1 too low 4 We’re Open! 5K+ · 5.0★ (45) wp.org #5 ↑12 1 too low 5 Forminator Forms – Contact Form, Payment Form & Custom Form Builder 600K+ · 4.8★ (2143) wp.org #12 ↓6 7 too low 6 Salat Times 500+ · 4.8★ (9) wp.org #3 ↑1 3 too high 7 SlimStat Analytics – Real-Time Stats, Heatmaps & Ecommerce 70K+ · 4.8★ (816) wp.org #8 1 too low 8 WP Date and Time Shortcode 10K+ · 4.9★ (31) wp.org #7 1 too high 9 Reading Time WP 20K+ · 4.8★ (20) wp.org #6 ↓1 3 too high 10 Real-Time Find and Replace 70K+ · 4.5★ (82) wp.org #10 ↓1 11 Jetpack – AI Agents & MCP, Security, Backup & Analytics 3M+ · 3.7★ (2408) wp.org #11 ↓1 12 UpdraftPlus: WP Backup & Migration Plugin 4M+ · 4.8★ (8706) wp.org #19 ↓1 7 too low 13 Delivery & Pickup Date Time for WooCommerce 5K+ · 4.9★ (282) wp.org #13 ↑7 14 Visitor Traffic Real Time Statistics 30K+ · 4.1★ (233) wp.org #16 ↓1 2 too low 15 The Events Calendar 600K+ · 4.2★ (2461) wp.org #23 ↓2 8 too low 16 Daily Prayer Time 1K+ · 4.9★ (96) wp.org #24 8 too low 17 Read Meter – Reading Time & Progress Bar 10K+ · 4.5★ (19) wp.org #14 ↓1 3 too high 18 StatCounter – Real Time Visitor Stats, Session Replay & Heatmaps 70K+ · 4.2★ (56) wp.org #21 ↑1 3 too low 19 WP Time Slots Booking Form 1K+ · 5.0★ (41) wp.org #22 ↑1 3 too low 20 WooCommerce PayPal Payments 800K+ · 2.9★ (583) wp.org #17 3 too high 21 Order Delivery Date And Time 1K+ · 4.6★ (19) wp.org #20 ↓1 1 too high 22 Tides Today UK and Ireland tide times 100+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #18 ↓7 4 too high 23 O One Time Login 40K+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #15 ↓3 8 too high 24 Muslim Prayer Times 60+ · 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.