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← Rankings

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

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 “validation”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 16 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.

Ranked above its merit

Postcode.eu Address Validation shows at wp.org #7 but places #23 on merit, a gap of 16 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.

Buried gem

Database Addon for Contact Form 7 – CFDB7 places #8 on merit, 5.0★ from 1875 reviews, but shows at wp.org #20. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Contact Form 7 10M+ · 4.0★ (2186) wp.org #1 2 Anti-Spam, Spam FireWall by CleanTalk 200K+ · 4.8★ (3220) wp.org #2 ↑3 3 Jquery Validation For Contact Form 7 8K+ · 4.6★ (87) wp.org #3 ↓1 4 301 Redirects – Redirect Manager 300K+ · 4.7★ (578) wp.org #11 ↑2 7 too low 5 EU/UK VAT Validation Manager for WooCommerce 7K+ · 4.8★ (39) wp.org #4 ↓1 1 too high 6 WPCode – Insert Headers and Footers + Custom Code Snippets – WordPress Code Manager 3M+ · 4.9★ (1915) wp.org #15 9 too low 7 PDF Invoices & Packing Slips for WooCommerce 300K+ · 5.0★ (1865) wp.org #13 ↓1 6 too low 8 Database Addon for Contact Form 7 – CFDB7 600K+ · 5.0★ (1875) wp.org #20 ↑2 12 too low 9 Checkout Field Editor (Checkout Manager) for WooCommerce 400K+ · 4.9★ (1056) wp.org #19 ↓3 10 too low 10 WP Armour – Honeypot Anti Spam 400K+ · 5.0★ (1471) wp.org #21 ↑2 11 too low 11 Flexible Checkout Fields for WooCommerce – WooCommerce Checkout Manager 80K+ · 4.7★ (296) wp.org #18 ↑2 7 too low 12 Spam Protection | Maspik 30K+ · 4.7★ (87) wp.org #22 ↓3 10 too low 13 Advanced Shipping Validation for WooCommerce 400+ · 5.0★ (9) wp.org #9 ↓1 4 too high 14 Masteriyo LMS – LMS Course Builder, Quizzes & Certificates 6K+ · 4.8★ (184) wp.org #17 ↑1 3 too low 15 ELEX WooCommerce Address Validation & Google Address Autocomplete Plugin 700+ · 4.2★ (10) wp.org #8 ↑1 7 too high 16 UK Address Postcode Validation 700+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #5 ↓1 11 too high 17 Campos Checkout Brasileiro para WooCommerce 5K+ · 4.9★ (45) wp.org #23 6 too low 18 ZeroBounce Email Verification & Validation 900+ · 4.8★ (4) wp.org #10 8 too high 19 Address Validation and Autocomplete for WooCommerce | Addressfinder 900+ · 4.3★ (6) wp.org #12 ↓1 7 too high 20 Real Time Validation For Gravity Forms 500+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #6 ↑1 14 too high 21 Multi-Carrier Shippo Shipping Rates & Address Validation for WooCommerce 3K+ · 3.8★ (11) wp.org #14 7 too high 22 Type Attribute Warnings Removal 900+ · 5.0★ (5) wp.org #24 2 too low 23 Postcode.eu Address Validation 200+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #7 ↓1 16 too high 24 HTML Validation 300+ · 1.0★ (1) wp.org #16 ↑1 8 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.