Plugin Pulse Beta
← Rankings

wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “unit testing”

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 “unit testing”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 12 of the top 20. 3 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.

P

Ranked above its merit

PE Category Filter shows at wp.org #17 but places #23 on merit, a gap of 6 places. Its 200+ 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 WP STAGING – Backups & Restore, Migration & Clone Plugin – Cloud Backups, Scheduled Backups 100K+ · 4.8★ (2470) wp.org #1 2 Germanized for WooCommerce 70K+ · 4.8★ (496) wp.org #5 ↑1 3 too low 3 LightStart – Maintenance Mode, Coming Soon and Landing Page Builder 400K+ · 4.3★ (874) wp.org #6 ↑1 3 too low 4 User Admin Simplifier 10K+ · 5.0★ (31) wp.org #4 5 CheckView – Form & Checkout Testing 1K+ · 5.0★ (8) wp.org #2 3 too high 6 Two Factor 100K+ · 4.7★ (209) wp.org #8 2 too low 7 Waymark 900+ · 5.0★ (54) wp.org #7 8 Opti-Behavior – Self-Hosted Heatmaps, Funnels, A/B Testing & Smart Insights 1K+ · 5.0★ (6) wp.org #3 ↑2 5 too high 9 Weight Based Shipping for WooCommerce 50K+ · 4.6★ (83) wp.org #11 ↓2 2 too low 10 J jQuery Updater 20K+ · 4.5★ (64) wp.org #12 2 too low 11 Plugin Check (PCP) 10K+ · 4.5★ (36) wp.org #10 1 too high 12 HashBar – Announcement, Notification Bar & Popup Campaign 9K+ · 4.2★ (38) wp.org #9 ↑2 3 too high 13 Go Live Update Urls 90K+ · 4.5★ (59) wp.org #14 1 too low 14 FG PrestaShop to WooCommerce 800+ · 4.7★ (125) wp.org #18 ↓1 4 too low 15 Ad Invalid Click Protector (AICP) 10K+ · 4.7★ (62) wp.org #24 ↓1 9 too low 16 Ultimeter – the Ultimate Progress and Goals Meter 1K+ · 5.0★ (24) wp.org #13 3 too high 17 Wp-Insert 9K+ · 4.5★ (142) wp.org #20 3 too low 18 wp-forecast 4K+ · 4.2★ (23) wp.org #15 3 too high 19 Shared Albums for Google Photos 500+ · 4.9★ (10) wp.org #16 3 too high 20 Countix Sales Countdown Timer 5K+ · 4.4★ (26) wp.org #21 1 too low 21 Gold Price Based on Weight 300+ · 5.0★ (9) wp.org #23 ↓1 2 too low 22 Klaviyo 100K+ · 2.8★ (24) wp.org #22 ↑2 23 P PE Category Filter 200+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #17 ↑1 6 too high 24 SnappBox 400+ · 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.