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

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 “whitelabel”, we and wp.org disagree on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 10 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

F4 Simple White Label shows at wp.org #1 but places #12 on merit, a gap of 11 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

MalCare WordPress Security Plugin – Malware Scanner, Cleaner, Security Firewall places #9 on merit, 4.4★ from 559 reviews, but shows at wp.org #23. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 OMGF | GDPR/DSGVO Compliant, Faster Google Fonts. Easy. 300K+ · 4.7★ (213) wp.org #3 2 too low 2 FooGallery Photo Gallery : Image, Video & Masonry Galleries 100K+ · 4.8★ (995) wp.org #4 2 too low 3 Modula Image Gallery – Photo Grid & Video Gallery 100K+ · 4.7★ (616) wp.org #5 2 too low 4 Unbloater 5K+ · 5.0★ (17) wp.org #2 2 too high 5 PWA for WP – Progressive Web Apps Made Simple 10K+ · 4.6★ (230) wp.org #6 1 too low 6 WP Webhooks – Automate repetitive tasks by creating powerful automation workflows directly within WordPress 20K+ · 4.7★ (55) wp.org #7 1 too low 7 WP Compress – Instant Performance & Speed Optimization 9K+ · 4.5★ (155) wp.org #8 1 too low 8 Leaflet Maps Marker (Google Maps, OpenStreetMap, Bing Maps) 9K+ · 4.6★ (244) wp.org #13 5 too low 9 MalCare WordPress Security Plugin – Malware Scanner, Cleaner, Security Firewall 100K+ · 4.4★ (559) wp.org #23 14 too low 10 BlogVault Backup & Staging 80K+ · 4.6★ (332) wp.org #24 14 too low 11 Ocean Extra 400K+ · 3.3★ (67) wp.org #9 2 too high 12 F4 Simple White Label 200+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #1 11 too high 13 Swift Performance Lite 6K+ · 3.6★ (125) wp.org #10 ↑1 3 too high 14 The WP Remote WordPress Plugin 30K+ · 4.6★ (74) wp.org #22 ↑1 8 too low 15 C Custom Login URL 1K+ · 3.8★ (18) wp.org #11 ↑1 4 too high 16 SEO Audit – WP Site Auditor 100+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #12 ↑2 4 too high 17 SEOJuice 50+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #14 ↑1 3 too high 18 Rampex.io Payment Gateway 30+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #16 2 too high 19 Smitacs Transaction Gateway for PPOB — · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #15 ↑6 4 too high 20 Chronos – Opening Hours & Scheduling 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #20 21 Brain Pod AI Writer – AI Image Generator – AI Chat Assistant – Whitelabel Generative AI 30+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #17 4 too high 22 BilloraOne Connector — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #21 ↑1 1 too high 23 Maintenance Reports by webcycle — · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #18 5 too high 24 Dresium – AI Virtual Try-On & Fitting Room for WooCommerce — · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #19 5 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.