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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “widget factory”

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 “widget factory”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 11 of the top 20. 4 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

DevPress Factory for Elementor – Video Carousel Popup shows at wp.org #4 but places #14 on merit, a gap of 10 places. Its 50+ installs carry it up the search order; its 0.0★ average from 0 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

User Submitted Posts – Enable Users to Submit Posts from the Front End places #7 on merit, 4.8★ from 913 reviews, but shows at wp.org #19. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 WC Fields Factory 7K+ · 4.3★ (168) wp.org #1 2 Maps Widget for Google Maps 20K+ · 4.6★ (512) wp.org #3 1 too low 3 Advanced Ads – Ad Manager & AdSense 90K+ · 4.9★ (1463) wp.org #6 3 too low 4 Slider, Image Slider & Carousel by Slider Factory – Responsive Slideshow, Video Slider 2K+ · 4.5★ (13) wp.org #2 2 too high 5 Tangible: Loops & Logic 2K+ · 4.9★ (39) wp.org #5 6 Woody Code Snippets – Insert PHP, CSS, JS, and Header/Footer Scripts 50K+ · 4.5★ (221) wp.org #7 1 too low 7 User Submitted Posts – Enable Users to Submit Posts from the Front End 10K+ · 4.8★ (913) wp.org #19 12 too low 8 Clearfy Cache – WordPress optimization plugin, Minify HTML, CSS & JS, Defer 40K+ · 4.7★ (339) wp.org #16 8 too low 9 YayCurrency – WooCommerce Multi-Currency Switcher 7K+ · 4.8★ (114) wp.org #13 4 too low 10 Agile Store Locator 10K+ · 4.9★ (59) wp.org #11 1 too low 11 TI WooCommerce Wishlist 100K+ · 4.7★ (503) wp.org #14 3 too low 12 BotBlocker Security – Complete security platform 3K+ · 5.0★ (10) wp.org #8 4 too high 13 ShareToSocial – Social Media Share Buttons & Sharing Icons 100+ · 4.6★ (5) wp.org #10 3 too high 14 DevPress Factory for Elementor – Video Carousel Popup 50+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #4 10 too high 15 KiviCare – Clinic & Patient Management System (EHR) 1K+ · 3.6★ (23) wp.org #21 6 too low 16 Scry Search: Meilisearch for WordPress 40+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #12 4 too high 17 Database Reset Pro – Clean & Reset WordPress Database 300+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #15 2 too high 18 Resetify – Advanced Reset & Database Cleaner 100+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #9 9 too high 19 DevPress Factory Live Chat — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #18 1 too high 20 DevPress Factory Elegant Popup — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #22 2 too low 21 WebCalendar 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #23 2 too low 22 The WP Map Factory 10+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #20 2 too high 23 WP Optimizer – PageSpeed, Cache, Minify & Core Web Vitals 100+ · 3.0★ (2) wp.org #24 1 too low 24 WP-HR Manager: The Human Resources Plugin for WordPress 200+ · 2.0★ (5) wp.org #17 7 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.