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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “tip plugin”

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 “tip plugin”, 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

Order Tip & Donations for WooCommerce shows at wp.org #7 but places #23 on merit, a gap of 16 places. Its 300+ 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

Easy Social Feed – All In One Social Feed Plugin for WordPress places #9 on merit, 4.6★ from 502 reviews, but shows at wp.org #22. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Site Kit by Google – Analytics, Search Console, AdSense, Speed 5M+ · 4.2★ (1012) wp.org #2 1 too low 2 Order Tip for WooCommerce 2K+ · 4.3★ (16) wp.org #1 1 too high 3 Speed Optimizer – The All-In-One Performance-Boosting Plugin 1M+ · 4.2★ (641) wp.org #3 ↑1 4 GiveWP – Donation Plugin and Fundraising Platform 100K+ · 4.6★ (708) wp.org #4 ↓1 5 WooCommerce 7M+ · 4.5★ (4833) wp.org #5 ↑1 6 CMP – Coming Soon & Maintenance Plugin by NiteoThemes 200K+ · 4.7★ (326) wp.org #10 ↑1 4 too low 7 Modula Image Gallery – Photo Grid & Video Gallery 100K+ · 4.7★ (616) wp.org #14 7 too low 8 CartFlows – Funnel Builder & Checkout Plugin for WooCommerce 200K+ · 4.8★ (517) wp.org #9 ↑1 1 too low 9 Easy Social Feed – All In One Social Feed Plugin for WordPress 30K+ · 4.6★ (502) wp.org #22 13 too low 10 Testimonial – Testimonial Slider and Showcase Plugin 20K+ · 4.6★ (67) wp.org #15 ↑5 5 too low 11 Freesoul Deactivate Plugins – Disable plugins on individual WordPress pages 8K+ · 4.8★ (104) wp.org #18 ↓1 7 too low 12 Lightbox & Modal Popup WordPress Plugin – FooBox 100K+ · 3.9★ (95) wp.org #16 ↓1 4 too low 13 WPPizza – A Restaurant Plugin 900+ · 5.0★ (55) wp.org #24 11 too low 14 Broken Link Checker 500K+ · 3.8★ (605) wp.org #21 7 too low 15 Quotes and Tips by BestWebSoft 1K+ · 4.5★ (11) wp.org #12 3 too high 16 D Disable Welcome Messages and Tips 700+ · 5.0★ (13) wp.org #20 ↓2 4 too low 17 ExactMetrics – Google Analytics Dashboard for WordPress (Website Stats Plugin) 200K+ · 2.5★ (1546) wp.org #19 2 too low 18 Surfer – WordPress Plugin 6K+ · 4.7★ (10) wp.org #17 ↓1 1 too high 19 AliNext – AliExpress Dropshipping Plugin for WooCommerce 4K+ · 4.3★ (53) wp.org #23 4 too low 20 WPC Order Tip for WooCommerce 2K+ · 3.8★ (4) wp.org #6 ↓1 14 too high 21 Tip Jar WP 200+ · 3.3★ (7) wp.org #11 ↓2 10 too high 22 Donation or Tip For WooCommerce 100+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #8 14 too high 23 Order Tip & Donations for WooCommerce 300+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #7 16 too high 24 Plugin Memory Usage 600+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #13 11 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.