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

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 “upsells”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 10 of the top 20. 8 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

WPC Smart Linked Products – Upsells & Cross-sells for WooCommerce shows at wp.org #7 but places #21 on merit, a gap of 14 places. Its 600+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 2 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

FunnelKit – Funnel Builder Plugin for WooCommerce Checkout places #10 on merit, 5.0★ from 1028 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 signals wp.org

Elementor Website Builder – more than just a page builder 10M+ · 4.5★ (7323) not PHP-currentheavy footprint wp.org #1 2

Upsell Funnel Builder for WooCommerce – Create Upsells, Cross-Sells, Order Bumps, Frequently Bought, and Popups. 2K+ · 4.7★ (116) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #3 ↓1 4

Forminator Forms – Contact Form, Payment Form & Custom Form Builder 600K+ · 4.8★ (2143) wp.org #8 ↓2 4 too low 5

CartFlows – Funnel Builder & Checkout Plugin for WooCommerce 200K+ · 4.8★ (517) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #5 6

Payment Plugins for PayPal WooCommerce 80K+ · 4.8★ (127) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #4 ↑10 2 too high 7

Popup Maker – Boost Sales, Conversions, Optins, Subscribers with the Ultimate WP Popup Builder 600K+ · 4.9★ (4514) wp.org #11 ↓2 4 too low 8

UpsellWP – Upsell and Related Products Offers for WooCommerce 5K+ · 4.9★ (149) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #6 ↓2 2 too high 9

WPFunnels – Funnel Builder for WooCommerce with Checkout & One Click Upsell 5K+ · 4.9★ (175) wp.org #10 ↓2 1 too low 10

FunnelKit – Funnel Builder Plugin for WooCommerce Checkout 30K+ · 5.0★ (1028) wp.org #17 7 too low 11

Side Cart Woocommerce | Woocommerce Cart 70K+ · 4.9★ (453) wp.org #16 ↑4 5 too low 12

Sliding Cart for WooCommerce by FunnelKit – Skip Cart & Reach WooCommerce Checkout Faster 30K+ · 5.0★ (111) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #9 ↑10 3 too high 13

MailPoet – Newsletters, Email Marketing, and Automation 500K+ · 4.4★ (1435) heavy footprint wp.org #15 ↓5 2 too low 14

SureCart – Ecommerce Made Easy For Selling Physical Products, Digital Downloads, Subscriptions, Donations, & Payments 80K+ · 4.8★ (288) heavy footprint wp.org #19 5 too low 15

FluentSMTP – WP Mail SMTP Plugin with Amazon SES, SendGrid, Mailgun, Postmark, Cloudflare, toSend, Gmail and Any SMTP 700K+ · 4.8★ (410) wp.org #23 ↓1 8 too low 16

One Click Upsell Funnel for Woocommerce 1K+ · 4.5★ (98) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #18 ↓3 2 too low 17

Custom Fonts – Host Your Fonts Locally 400K+ · 4.3★ (62) wp.org #24 7 too low 18

WPC Frequently Bought Together for WooCommerce 10K+ · 4.5★ (84) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #22 ↓1 4 too low 19

StoreGrowth – Upsell, BOGO, Quick View, Direct Checkout & Side Cart for WooCommerce 2K+ · 5.0★ (7) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews wp.org #12 ↓1 7 too high 20

UpSell for WooCommerce 200+ · 5.0★ (4) thin reviews wp.org #14 ↓1 6 too high 21

WPC Smart Linked Products – Upsells & Cross-sells for WooCommerce 600+ · 5.0★ (2) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews wp.org #7 14 too high 22

SaffireTech Bulk Edit Upsells and Cross-Sells for WooCommerce 200+ · 4.2★ (10) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews wp.org #20 ↓2 2 too high 23

Side Cart & Upsell for WooCommerce 20+ · 5.0★ (2) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews wp.org #21 ↓5 2 too high 24

Upzell Checkout Upsell Funnel for WooCommerce 600+ · 5.0★ (1) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews wp.org #13 ↓1 11 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.