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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “virtual site”

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 “virtual site”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 13 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

CrowdHandler virtual waiting room shows at wp.org #8 but places #20 on merit, a gap of 12 places. Its 100+ installs carry it up the search order; its 3.4★ average from 5 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Folders – Unlimited Folders to Organize Media Library Folder, Pages, Posts, File Manager places #6 on merit, 5.0★ from 1525 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 The Events Calendar 600K+ · 4.2★ (2461) wp.org #1 2 WPVR – 360 Panorama viewer and Virtual Tour Builder for WordPress 10K+ · 4.7★ (133) wp.org #5 ↓1 3 too low 3 iPanorama 360 – Advanced Virtual Tour Builder 4K+ · 4.5★ (31) wp.org #3 ↑1 4 Virtual Robots.txt 40K+ · 4.3★ (10) wp.org #2 2 too high 5 W3 Total Cache 900K+ · 4.4★ (5420) wp.org #10 ↑1 5 too low 6 Folders – Unlimited Folders to Organize Media Library Folder, Pages, Posts, File Manager 90K+ · 5.0★ (1525) wp.org #17 ↓1 11 too low 7 Multiple Domain Mapping on Single Site 6K+ · 4.6★ (48) wp.org #6 1 too high 8 Simply Schedule Appointments 50K+ · 5.0★ (155) wp.org #15 ↑2 7 too low 9 Blackhole for Bad Bots 30K+ · 4.7★ (148) wp.org #19 ↓4 10 too low 10 Event Tickets and Registration 90K+ · 3.5★ (236) wp.org #12 ↓4 2 too low 11 Simple Site Map Page 6K+ · 4.3★ (6) wp.org #4 7 too high 12 Events Manager – Calendar, Bookings, Tickets, Appointments and more! 60K+ · 4.2★ (551) wp.org #18 ↓4 6 too low 13 Panorama – Turn Photos into Immersive Virtual Tours 2K+ · 4.3★ (9) wp.org #7 ↓1 6 too high 14 Eventin – Events Calendar, Tickets, Registration, Booking & WooCommerce 10K+ · 4.7★ (413) wp.org #20 ↓3 6 too low 15 Event Genius – Event Calendar, Event Registration, and Attendee Management 600+ · 4.8★ (17) wp.org #14 ↓1 1 too high 16 WPGlobus 8K+ · 4.5★ (228) wp.org #22 ↓1 6 too low 17 Virtual Classroom & Video Conferencing – BigBlueButton 400+ · 4.6★ (10) wp.org #11 ↓3 6 too high 18 Nexter Extension – Security, Performance, Code Snippets & Site Toolkit 10K+ · 4.7★ (13) wp.org #16 ↑4 2 too high 19 EventON – Events Calendar 6K+ · 4.1★ (44) wp.org #23 4 too low 20 CrowdHandler virtual waiting room 100+ · 3.4★ (5) wp.org #8 12 too high 21 HappyVR – Virtual Tour Builder & 360 Panorama Viewer 70+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #9 ↑2 12 too high 22 myPOS Checkout 4K+ · 3.3★ (16) wp.org #21 ↓1 1 too high 23 Virtual product checkout field manager for WooCommerce 50+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #13 ↓2 10 too high 24 Photo Sphere Viewer – 360° Virtual Tour, Panorama, 360 Video & AR 3D Viewer 600+ · 3.5★ (2) wp.org #24

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.