wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “url tracking”

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 “url tracking”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 13 of the top 20.

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 the install base is organic or host-pushed, and its risk of being pulled.

Ranked above its merit

CF7 Visited Pages URL Tracking shows at wp.org #7 but places #24 on merit, a gap of 17 places. Its 60+ 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

Analytify – Google Analytics 4 Tracking and Reporting in WordPress places #11 on merit, 4.7★ from 488 reviews, but shows at wp.org #22. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin signals wp.org

Advanced Shipment Tracking for WooCommerce 70K+ · 4.5★ (355) wp.org #1 2

PrettyLinks – Affiliate Link Management, URL Shortener, Link Cloaking, Tracking & Branded Short Links 200K+ · 4.8★ (1322) wp.org #2 3

URL Shortify – Simple and Easy URL Shortener 10K+ · 4.7★ (169) wp.org #3 4

Pixel Manager for WooCommerce – Conversion Tracking, Google Ads, GA4, TikTok, Dynamic Remarketing 40K+ · 4.9★ (399) wp.org #4 5

WP Mail SMTP by WPForms – SMTP for Reliable Email Delivery with Gmail, Outlook, Amazon SES, Brevo, Other SMTP & More 4M+ · 4.8★ (5209) wp.org #9 4 too low 6

Trakoo – Orders Tracking for WooCommerce 10K+ · 4.5★ (58) wp.org #5 1 too high 7

AfterShip Tracking – All-In-One WooCommerce Order Tracking (Free plan available) 7K+ · 4.8★ (633) wp.org #10 ↑1 3 too low 8

All in One SEO – AI SEO Plugin to Boost SEO Rankings & Traffic (Schema, Local SEO, Sitemap & SEO Insights) 2M+ · 4.7★ (5231) wp.org #11 ↓1 3 too low 9

Order Tracking – WordPress Status Tracking Plugin 3K+ · 4.6★ (73) wp.org #6 3 too high 10

Yoast SEO – Advanced SEO with real-time guidance and built-in AI 10M+ · 4.8★ (27820) wp.org #17 7 too low 11

Analytify – Google Analytics 4 Tracking and Reporting in WordPress 20K+ · 4.7★ (488) wp.org #22 11 too low 12

WP Statistics – Simple, privacy-friendly Google Analytics alternative 500K+ · 4.1★ (758) wp.org #18 6 too low 13

ATUM WooCommerce Inventory Management and Stock Tracking 10K+ · 4.7★ (128) wp.org #19 6 too low 14

Burst Statistics – Simple WordPress Analytics (Google Analytics Alternative) 200K+ · 4.9★ (186) wp.org #23 9 too low 15

YITH WooCommerce Order & Shipment Tracking 7K+ · 3.7★ (15) thin reviews wp.org #8 7 too high 16

LinkCentral – URL shortener, Affiliate Links & Custom Link Shortener with Link Tracking 400+ · 5.0★ (19) thin reviews wp.org #21 5 too low 17

User Activity Tracking and Log 2K+ · 3.5★ (34) wp.org #15 2 too high 18

Remove Taxonomy URL 1K+ · 4.2★ (6) thin reviews wp.org #12 6 too high 19

Lasso Lite – Affiliate Link Manager, URL Shortener & Link Tracking 4K+ · 3.1★ (47) wp.org #20 1 too low 20 E Easy UTM tracking with contact form 7 2K+ · 4.5★ (8) thin reviews wp.org #16 4 too high 21

CP Referrer and Conversion Tracking 300+ · 4.7★ (12) thin reviews wp.org #24 3 too low 22

Stape Conversion Tracking 10K+ · 5.0★ (4) thin reviews wp.org #14 8 too high 23

CallRail Phone Call Tracking 10K+ · 3.7★ (6) thin reviews wp.org #13 10 too high 24

CF7 Visited Pages URL Tracking 60+ · 5.0★ (1) thin reviews wp.org #7 17 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.