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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “world map”

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 “world map”, 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

MatrixMap – Google Maps, OpenStreetMap, Store Locator & World Maps shows at wp.org #8 but places #23 on merit, a gap of 15 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

W3 Total Cache places #10 on merit, 4.4★ from 5420 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 Open User Map – Interactive Leaflet Maps 10K+ · 5.0★ (70) wp.org #2 ↑1 1 too low 2 WP Go Maps – Google Map, OpenStreetMap, Leaflet Map 300K+ · 4.8★ (3055) wp.org #3 ↓1 1 too low 3 Interactive World Map 900+ · 3.5★ (17) wp.org #1 2 too high 4 The Events Calendar 600K+ · 4.2★ (2461) wp.org #6 ↑3 2 too low 5 MapGeo – Interactive Geo Maps 30K+ · 4.4★ (65) wp.org #4 1 too high 6 HTML5 Maps 4K+ · 4.6★ (45) wp.org #5 ↑2 1 too high 7 Maps Widget for Google Maps 20K+ · 4.6★ (512) wp.org #12 ↓2 5 too low 8 Complianz GDPR/CCPA Cookie Consent Banner 1M+ · 4.7★ (1667) wp.org #11 ↑1 3 too low 9 Premium Addons for Elementor – AI-Ready Elementor Addons, Widgets & Templates 600K+ · 4.9★ (1680) wp.org #20 11 too low 10 W3 Total Cache 900K+ · 4.4★ (5420) wp.org #23 13 too low 11 Mapster WP Maps 3K+ · 4.9★ (54) wp.org #13 2 too low 12 Independent Analytics – WordPress Analytics Plugin 100K+ · 4.8★ (167) wp.org #21 9 too low 13 Travelers' Map 1K+ · 5.0★ (46) wp.org #10 ↓5 3 too high 14 Leaflet Maps Marker (Google Maps, OpenStreetMap, Bing Maps) 9K+ · 4.6★ (244) wp.org #18 ↓3 4 too low 15 MapSVG – Vector maps, Image maps, Google Maps 1K+ · 4.5★ (31) wp.org #15 16 Tuskcode Map Pro for Bing Maps 600+ · 4.8★ (19) wp.org #14 2 too high 17 Kikote – Location Picker at Checkout & Google Address AutoFill Plugin for WooCommerce 1K+ · 5.0★ (65) wp.org #24 ↓3 7 too low 18 Basic Interactive World Map 900+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #7 ↓1 11 too high 19 Vision – Interactive Image Map with Hotspots Builder 2K+ · 4.9★ (9) wp.org #17 2 too high 20 Beehive Analytics – Google Analytics Dashboard 20K+ · 4.5★ (13) wp.org #22 ↑1 2 too low 21 Interactive Globes – 3D World Maps 400+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #9 ↓1 12 too high 22 Gmap Block 10K+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #16 6 too high 23 MatrixMap – Google Maps, OpenStreetMap, Store Locator & World Maps 200+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #8 ↑3 15 too high 24 Travel Map 1K+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #19 ↓1 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.