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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “version update”

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 “version update”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 12 of the top 20. 2 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

Auto Update Post Date shows at wp.org #11 but places #22 on merit, a gap of 11 places. Its 2K+ 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

Yoast SEO – Advanced SEO with real-time guidance and built-in AI places #8 on merit, 4.8★ from 27821 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 wp.org
1 Wordfence Security – Firewall, Malware Scan, and Login Security 5M+ · 4.7★ (5039) wp.org #1 2 Easy Updates Manager 300K+ · 4.8★ (726) wp.org #2 3 UpdraftPlus: WP Backup & Migration Plugin 4M+ · 4.8★ (8706) wp.org #5 2 too low 4 Go Live Update Urls 90K+ · 4.5★ (59) wp.org #4 5 Version Info – Server Health Monitor, PHP & MySQL Version Display, Environment Indicators 10K+ · 5.0★ (15) wp.org #3 2 too high 6 Companion Auto Update 40K+ · 4.8★ (105) wp.org #7 ↓1 1 too low 7 WP Downgrade | Specific Core Version 100K+ · 4.8★ (169) wp.org #10 3 too low 8 Yoast SEO – Advanced SEO with real-time guidance and built-in AI 10M+ · 4.8★ (27821) wp.org #22 ↓1 14 too low 9 Disable All WordPress Updates 20K+ · 4.8★ (69) wp.org #12 3 too low 10 Disable WordPress Update Notifications and auto-update Email Notifications 10K+ · 4.2★ (19) wp.org #6 ↑1 4 too high 11 Translate WordPress with GTranslate 900K+ · 4.9★ (4962) wp.org #23 ↓1 12 too low 12 Modular DS: Monitor, update, and backup multiple websites 40K+ · 5.0★ (133) wp.org #20 ↓2 8 too low 13 Elementor Website Builder – more than just a page builder 10M+ · 4.5★ (7323) wp.org #19 6 too low 14 U Update Control 4K+ · 4.4★ (17) wp.org #8 6 too high 15 Search & Replace Everything – Quick and Easy Way to Find and Replace Text, Links 20K+ · 4.7★ (26) wp.org #16 1 too low 16 WP Updates Notifier 20K+ · 4.2★ (35) wp.org #17 1 too low 17 Content Update Scheduler 2K+ · 4.3★ (12) wp.org #9 8 too high 18 Meta Generator and Version Info Remover 10K+ · 5.0★ (28) wp.org #24 6 too low 19 Disable Updates – Updates Manager, Disable Automatic Updates, Disable All Updates 9K+ · 4.5★ (24) wp.org #13 6 too high 20 Bulk Price Update for Woocommerce 2K+ · 4.0★ (16) wp.org #15 5 too high 21 Disable Updates for WordPress Core, Plugins and Themes 9K+ · 4.8★ (4) wp.org #21 ↓1 22 Auto Update Post Date 2K+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #11 11 too high 23 Version Locker: Disable Updates, Rollback and Downgrade 100+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #14 9 too high 24 Ignore Or Disable Plugin Update 200+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #18 ↓1 6 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.