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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “trust seal”

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 “trust seal”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 6 of the top 20. 5 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.

M

Ranked above its merit

Marquix – Marquee, Scrolling Text & Logo Carousel for Elementor shows at wp.org #6 but places #13 on merit, a gap of 7 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.

merit plugin wp.org
1 TrustedSite 10K+ · 4.2★ (26) wp.org #1 2 FunnelKit – Funnel Builder for WooCommerce Checkout 30K+ · 5.0★ (1021) wp.org #5 3 too low 3 Trust Badges – Payment Icons & Secure Checkout Seals for WooCommerce 400+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #2 1 too high 4 Reviewkit – Trustpilot Reviews Widget & Embed 1K+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #3 1 too high 5 CloneGuard Security Scanning 10+ · 4.9★ (7) wp.org #18 13 too low 6 Midrag Trust Widget 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #4 2 too high 7 One Page Quick Checkout for WooCommerce 200+ · 4.3★ (9) wp.org #14 7 too low 8 RatingStar.de Seal — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #7 1 too high 9 PCrisk Trust Badge – Website Security Seal & Malware Scanner — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #8 1 too high 10 Trustbadg – Trust Badges, Payment Icons & Secure Checkout Seals — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #9 1 too high 11 Gatemi Trust Badges — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #10 1 too high 12 GoalPrevail Trust Icons — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #11 1 too high 13 M Marquix – Marquee, Scrolling Text & Logo Carousel for Elementor 100+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #6 7 too high 14 ManageX – Pre-Orders, Product Badges, Buy Now, Quick View, Advanced Cart and More for WooCommerce 10+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #13 1 too high 15 Jobber 1K+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #15 16 Testimonials Block – Customer Reviews, Ratings, Badges & Video Testimonials 200+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #16 17 Verify Trusted Reviews 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #12 5 too high 18 TIP Protocol — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #19 1 too low 19 WWU Right of Withdrawal for Popular Ecommerce Platforms 200+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #20 1 too low 20 V Vurl Evidence Badge — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #21 1 too low 21 VendorCert — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #22 1 too low 22 STM Smart Checkout for WooCommerce — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #24 2 too low 23 Dynamic Post – AI Content – White Paper – Peer Review – Tax & Accounting Sites 100+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #17 6 too high 24 Nexura Security — Malware Scanner, Firewall, 2FA & WordPress Security 10+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #23 1 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.