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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “toc generator”

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 “toc generator”, we and wp.org disagree on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 13 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

AI Marketing Expert — AI Email Marketing, AI Content Generator, SEO Analyzer, AI Workflow Automation, Social Media & Ai Chatbot shows at wp.org #2 but places #9 on merit, a gap of 7 places. Its 2K+ 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

Print My Blog – Print, PDF, & eBook Converter WordPress Plugin places #7 on merit, 4.8★ from 115 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 WP EXtra – One Click Optimize 6K+ · 4.9★ (41) wp.org #3 2 too low 2 EazyDocs – AI Powered Knowledge Base, Wiki, Documentation & FAQ Builder 2K+ · 4.7★ (100) wp.org #5 ↑1 3 too low 3 CM Table Of Contents – Clear navigation for better content discovery 100+ · 3.3★ (9) wp.org #1 2 too high 4 ThinkRank SEO – AI SEO Plugin for SEO & Google Search Console 20K+ · 4.9★ (36) wp.org #7 ↓2 3 too low 5 Block Animations, Motion & Scroll Effects – Ghost Kit 6K+ · 4.6★ (46) wp.org #10 5 too low 6 MPL-Publisher — Ebook & Audiobook Creator 700+ · 4.9★ (46) wp.org #13 7 too low 7 Print My Blog – Print, PDF, & eBook Converter WordPress Plugin 8K+ · 4.8★ (115) wp.org #15 8 too low 8 PixelCraft with WebP 500+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #6 ↑1 2 too high 9 AI Marketing Expert — AI Email Marketing, AI Content Generator, SEO Analyzer, AI Workflow Automation, Social Media & Ai Chatbot 2K+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #2 7 too high 10 Protos TOC Generator — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #4 6 too high 11 Table of Contents Generator – SmartTOC Lite 20+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #8 3 too high 12 Rocketship SEO 10+ · 5.0★ (5) wp.org #23 11 too low 13 T TOC Builder by RobertIvan — · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #9 4 too high 14 FYP Table of Contents – Automatic TOC Generator for Better SEO & Navigation — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #14 15 Link to Headline – Anchor Link Generator — · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #12 3 too high 16 A Ajejey Smart Table of Contents — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #16 17 DominoPost – Advanced Post Editor with AI Writer, Link Building Suite, Free Google Search Console & GA4 Analytics 100+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #11 6 too high 18 NexIndex – Auto Table of Contents & SEO Links — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #18 19 A Aria Auto Table of Contents (SEO Friendly) — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #20 1 too low 20 AI SEO Article Generator — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #21 1 too low 21 WPGreeks Securities & SEO Tools 10+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #17 4 too high 22 1 1Platform Content AI – AI Blog Writer, SEO & Internal Linking for WordPress 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #22 23 VonSEO — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #24 1 too low 24 DevInfoTech AI Blog Writer — · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #19 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.