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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “unload plugins”

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 “unload plugins”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 11 of the top 20. 1 plugin is 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

PowerUp – Admin Tools (Login/Logout Redirects, Scripts & Comments Control) shows at wp.org #7 but places #16 on merit, a gap of 9 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.

Buried gem

NextMove Lite – Thank You Page for WooCommerce places #7 on merit, 4.7★ from 150 reviews, but shows at wp.org #17. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Asset CleanUp: Page Speed Booster 100K+ · 4.9★ (1564) wp.org #1 2 OMGF | GDPR/DSGVO Compliant, Faster Google Fonts. Easy. 300K+ · 4.7★ (213) wp.org #2 3 Assets manager, dequeue scripts, dequeue styles for WordPress 2K+ · 4.3★ (53) wp.org #4 1 too low 4 Fattura24 400+ · 4.9★ (96) wp.org #5 1 too low 5 Specific Content For Mobile – Customize the mobile version without redirections 4K+ · 4.8★ (31) wp.org #9 ↓1 4 too low 6 Essential Form – The lightest plugin for contact forms, ultra lightweight and no spam 600+ · 4.9★ (19) wp.org #8 ↑1 2 too low 7 NextMove Lite – Thank You Page for WooCommerce 10K+ · 4.7★ (150) wp.org #17 ↑1 10 too low 8 System Dashboard 900+ · 4.9★ (16) wp.org #12 4 too low 9 Invoicing with InvoiceXpress for WooCommerce – Free 100+ · 5.0★ (11) wp.org #11 2 too low 10 GDPR-DSGVO compliant Embeds for Google Maps 100+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #6 4 too high 11 Code Unloader – Unload Unused CSS, JS & Assets Per Page 30+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #3 8 too high 12 WP Email Template 2K+ · 3.1★ (35) wp.org #21 9 too low 13 Compare Products for WooCommerce 20+ · 2.8★ (14) wp.org #22 ↓2 9 too low 14 Unload Product Enrichment for WooCommerce — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #10 4 too high 15 WPJ Sticky Video – Floating Video Player 20+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #13 2 too high 16 PowerUp – Admin Tools (Login/Logout Redirects, Scripts & Comments Control) 100+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #7 9 too high 17 Conditionally Load CF7 100+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #24 ↓1 7 too low 18 T Tracking for Divi 100+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #16 2 too high 19 EPIC Conditional Assets Loader — · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #14 5 too high 20 Massoftind Asset Manager — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #20 ↓1 21 GDPR-DSGVO compliant Embeds for YouTube Videos 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #23 ↓1 2 too low 22 Dr. Speed: AI Assets Scanner – Debloat & Dequeue Unused CSS/JS — · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #18 ↓1 4 too high 23 Pagelean – Conditional Script and Style Loading — · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #19 4 too high 24 Booster Sweeper: WordPress Asset Cleanup 10+ · 3.0★ (2) wp.org #15 9 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.