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

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 “unicorn”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 8 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.

Ranked above its merit

View User Metadata shows at wp.org #5 but places #10 on merit, a gap of 5 places. Its 1K+ 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

Edit Author Slug places #2 on merit, 4.8★ from 84 reviews, but shows at wp.org #7. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin signals wp.org

Two Factor (2FA) Authentication via Email 9K+ · 5.0★ (4) thin reviews wp.org #1 2

Edit Author Slug 100K+ · 4.8★ (84) wp.org #7 5 too low 3

Greenshift – animation and page builder blocks 70K+ · 4.8★ (107) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #8 5 too low 4

Export Single Post Page 3K+ · 4.7★ (3) thin reviews wp.org #2 2 too high 5

Media Library File Size 6K+ · 4.6★ (5) thin reviews wp.org #3 2 too high 6

Enable Turnstile (Cloudflare) for Gravity Forms 1K+ · 5.0★ (3) thin reviews wp.org #4 2 too high 7 A Admin Bar Tools 300+ · 4.8★ (8) closure risk thin reviews wp.org #15 8 too low 8

Cornify for WordPress 10+ · 5.0★ (4) closure risk thin reviews wp.org #14 6 too low 9

MobileMonkey X-Ray Installer 300+ · 0.0★ (0) closure risk thin reviewsstale but ranked wp.org #6 3 too high 10

View User Metadata 1K+ · 5.0★ (1) thin reviews wp.org #5 5 too high 11

DB Solution – 2FA 10+ · 0.0★ (0) thin reviews wp.org #10 1 too high 12

SlugPilot – Author Permalink Control — · 0.0★ (0) thin reviews wp.org #11 1 too high 13

Wpit Funny Name Generator 10+ · 5.0★ (1) closure risk thin reviewsstale but ranked wp.org #9 4 too high 14

Teduca Palettes — · 0.0★ (0) closure risk thin reviews wp.org #12 2 too high 15 U Unicornify — · 0.0★ (0) closure risk thin reviews wp.org #13 2 too high 16

Better Gravatar generated icons 10+ · 0.0★ (0) closure risk thin reviews wp.org #16 17 P Postyper — · 0.0★ (0) closure risk thin reviews wp.org #18 1 too low 18 H Hikari Unicornified Gravatars 10+ · 0.0★ (0) closure risk thin reviews wp.org #19 1 too low 19 G Google Code Commit Tracking — · 0.0★ (0) closure risk thin reviews wp.org #20 1 too low 20 M McNinja Post Styles 20+ · 5.0★ (1) closure risk thin reviews wp.org #17 3 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.