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

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 “xero”, we and wp.org disagree on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 14 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

MyWorks Sync for WooCommerce & Xero shows at wp.org #1 but places #8 on merit, a gap of 7 places. Its 1K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 2 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Calculated Fields Form – AI Form Builder for WordPress – Contact, Payment, Quote, Quiz & More places #2 on merit, 4.9★ from 973 reviews, but shows at wp.org #9. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Events Manager – Calendar, Bookings, Tickets, Appointments and more! 60K+ · 4.2★ (551) wp.org #2 1 too low 2 Calculated Fields Form – AI Form Builder for WordPress – Contact, Payment, Quote, Quiz & More 40K+ · 4.9★ (973) wp.org #9 ↓1 7 too low 3 WP EasyCart: Shopping Cart and eCommerce Store 3K+ · 4.5★ (206) wp.org #8 5 too low 4 MembershipWorks – Membership, Events & Directory 2K+ · 4.4★ (37) wp.org #6 2 too low 5 Advanced Form Integration — Connect Forms to 300+ Apps 9K+ · 4.8★ (91) wp.org #11 ↓1 6 too low 6 MyWorks Sync for WooCommerce & QuickBooks Online 5K+ · 4.7★ (75) wp.org #7 1 too low 7 Parex Bridge for Quickbooks & Xero 90+ · 5.0★ (8) wp.org #3 4 too high 8 MyWorks Sync for WooCommerce & Xero 1K+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #1 7 too high 9 Sync orders with Xero from WooCommerce – Xelation 100+ · 5.0★ (5) wp.org #4 5 too high 10 Invoice Gateway for WooCommerce – Invoice Payment Gateway 2K+ · 4.4★ (7) wp.org #5 5 too high 11 Ticket Tailor — Event Ticketing & Registration 4K+ · 4.3★ (46) wp.org #13 ↑3 2 too low 12 Easy Invoice – Invoice Generator, PDF Quotes & Payments 600+ · 4.4★ (7) wp.org #12 ↓1 13 Pixel Gallery Addons for Elementor 4K+ · 4.8★ (5) wp.org #15 2 too low 14 Checkfront Online Booking System 1K+ · 4.1★ (12) wp.org #24 ↓3 10 too low 15 Transporters.io 100+ · 4.4★ (5) wp.org #19 ↓1 4 too low 16 PaySlate Invoicing and Payment Requests for WordPress with Stripe and Square — · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #21 ↓1 5 too low 17 Syncible – Xero Sync for WooCommerce — · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #10 ↓1 7 too high 18 ShopCentral – Advanced Multi Store Management & Store Analytics for WooCommerce — · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #22 4 too low 19 Combidesk – Xero for WooCommerce — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #14 ↓2 5 too high 20 Demfilz Sync for Xero — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #16 ↓3 4 too high 21 Keyideas Connect for Xero — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #17 ↓3 4 too high 22 Sync Orders with Xero for WooCommerce – Cloudify — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #18 ↓1 4 too high 23 Xero Addons for Elementor — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #20 ↓1 3 too high 24 Daily Picks Fee Report for WooCommerce — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #23 1 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.