wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “xlsx”
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 “xlsx”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 6 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
EasySecure Import Export Courses Learndash shows at wp.org #14 but places #23 on merit, a gap of 9 places. Its 100+ 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.
wpDataTables – WordPress Data Table, Dynamic Tables & Table Charts Plugin 60K+ · 4.5★ (449)
wp.org #1 2 
Database Addon for Contact Form 7 – CFDB7 600K+ · 5.0★ (1875)
wp.org #2 3 
Import and export users and customers 70K+ · 4.7★ (259)
wp.org #4 1 too low 4 
Folders – Unlimited Folders to Organize Media Library Folder, Pages, Posts, File Manager 90K+ · 5.0★ (1525)
wp.org #6 ↑2 2 too low 5 
GravityExport Lite for Gravity Forms 10K+ · 5.0★ (39)
wp.org #3 2 too high 6 
Data Tables Generator by Supsystic – Excel-like, WooCommerce & Pricing Tables 10K+ · 4.7★ (497)
wp.org #7 ↓2 1 too low 7 
Store Exporter – Export WooCommerce Products, Orders, Subscriptions, Customers 6K+ · 4.1★ (166) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #5 ↓1 2 too high 8 
Order Export & Order Import for WooCommerce 50K+ · 4.7★ (337) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #8 ↓2 9 
WP Import Export Lite 40K+ · 4.0★ (113)
wp.org #10 ↓1 1 too low 10 
Tablesome Table – Contact Form DB – WPForms, CF7, Gravity, Forminator, Fluent 7K+ · 4.8★ (89) throws errorsnot PHP-currentheavy footprint
wp.org #9 ↓2 1 too high 11 
SeatReg 300+ · 5.0★ (30) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #11 ↓1 12 
Bulk Page Generator – LPagery 3K+ · 5.0★ (31)
wp.org #17 ↓5 5 too low 13 
Embed Any Document – Embed PDF, Word, PowerPoint and Excel Files 50K+ · 4.2★ (92)
wp.org #20 ↓4 7 too low 14 
Document Viewer – let visitors view files right in the browser 2K+ · 4.7★ (52)
wp.org #24 ↓3 10 too low 15 B BSK PDF Manager 7K+ · 4.5★ (46) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #15 16 
FileBird Document Library 5K+ · 4.9★ (8) thin reviews
wp.org #12 ↑2 4 too high 17 
BA Book Everything 10K+ · 4.2★ (20) thin reviews
wp.org #21 ↓3 4 too low 18 
Tainacan 1K+ · 5.0★ (12) heavy footprint thin reviews
wp.org #19 ↓4 1 too low 19 
Button Block – Stylish buttons that get more clicks 5K+ · 5.0★ (7) not PHP-current thin reviews
wp.org #18 ↓5 1 too high 20 
Export Customers Data 500+ · 5.0★ (3) thin reviews
wp.org #13 ↑4 7 too high 21 
Order Export for WooCommerce 2K+ · 3.8★ (14) thin reviews
wp.org #23 ↓3 2 too low 22 
Export Variable Products 400+ · 5.0★ (3) thin reviews
wp.org #16 6 too high 23 E EasySecure Import Export Courses Learndash 100+ · 5.0★ (2) thin reviews
wp.org #14 ↓3 9 too high 24 
Import Users & Customers with Meta | WP Ultimate CSV Importer Add-on 5K+ · 3.0★ (2) thin reviews
wp.org #22 ↓3 2 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.