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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “visa application”

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 “visa application”, 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

Zapper Payments shows at wp.org #3 but places #10 on merit, a gap of 7 places. Its 600+ 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

Stripe Payment Forms by WP Simple Pay – Accept Credit Card Payments + Subscriptions with Stripe places #4 on merit, 4.4★ from 117 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 CHIP for WooCommerce 4K+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #1 ↑1 2 GoDaddy Payments for WooCommerce 2K+ · 4.3★ (6) wp.org #4 ↑1 2 too low 3 Payments via PayMongo for WooCommerce 1K+ · 3.5★ (11) wp.org #6 3 too low 4 Stripe Payment Forms by WP Simple Pay – Accept Credit Card Payments + Subscriptions with Stripe 8K+ · 4.4★ (117) wp.org #20 16 too low 5 Stripe Payment Forms by WP Full Pay – Accept Credit Card Payments, Donations & Subscriptions 8K+ · 4.2★ (26) wp.org #17 12 too low 6 MyFatoorah – WooCommerce 2K+ · 4.3★ (3) wp.org #2 ↓1 4 too high 7 Virtuaria Payments with PagBank for WooCommerce 1K+ · 4.8★ (25) wp.org #23 ↓1 16 too low 8 Payment Forms for Paystack 2K+ · 3.8★ (9) wp.org #10 ↑8 2 too low 9 Online Payments with iK Pay Gateway 1K+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #7 2 too high 10 Zapper Payments 600+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #3 7 too high 11 PlatiOnline Payments 700+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #5 ↓1 6 too high 12 Allpay Payment Gateway 70+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #8 4 too high 13 Peach Payments Gateway 1K+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #13 ↓2 14 VietnamVisaHelp Apply – Vietnam e-Visa Application Form for Travel Agencies — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #11 ↓1 3 too high 15 Money Space 70+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #9 6 too high 16 Wallet Up – Cash App, Venmo, PayPal, Zelle & QR Code Payments 200+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #12 ↑2 4 too high 17 Click & Pledge WPJobBoard 20+ · 4.0★ (1) wp.org #15 ↓2 2 too high 18 EasyTransac for WooCommerce 60+ · 3.7★ (3) wp.org #18 ↓2 19 CorvusPay WooCommerce Payment Gateway 1K+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #21 2 too low 20 payever Checkout – Composable Payment Gateway 800+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #22 2 too low 21 Pagadito Payment Gateway for WooCommerce 200+ · 3.0★ (2) wp.org #14 ↑1 7 too high 22 Flitt payment gateway for WooCommerce 100+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #19 3 too high 23 Pay Advantage 20+ · 3.0★ (2) wp.org #16 ↓4 7 too high 24 Trust Payments Gateway for WooCommerce 400+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #24 ↓1

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.