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

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 “zelle”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 9 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

Direct Payments WP – Receive Payments with Forms shows at wp.org #7 but places #13 on merit, a gap of 6 places. Its 50+ 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.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Checkout with Zelle on Woocommerce 3K+ · 3.4★ (5) wp.org #1 2 Custom Payment Gateways for WooCommerce 8K+ · 3.8★ (21) wp.org #5 ↓1 3 too low 3 Direct Payments for WooCommerce – Bank Transfer, Mobile Money, Crypto and Peer-to-Peer (P2P) Payments 800+ · 5.0★ (10) wp.org #4 ↓1 1 too low 4 Direct Invoices – Invoicing & Payment Requests for WordPress 200+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #6 2 too low 5 Wallet Up – Cash App, Venmo, PayPal, Zelle & QR Code Payments 200+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #2 3 too high 6 Popular Brand Icons – Simple Icons 3K+ · 4.7★ (10) wp.org #16 ↓2 10 too low 7 Get Cash 400+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #3 ↑2 4 too high 8 D613 Pay – Zelle, Venmo, PayPal & Cash App Payments for WooCommerce 20+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #8 ↑2 9 TrustLane Manual Gateways — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #12 ↓1 3 too low 10 Gyta Buyback | WooCommerce Product Trade-In and Buy Back System 10+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #10 ↓2 11 PaidSeal — Invoices, Payments & Quote Forms — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #13 ↓1 2 too low 12 VERIFIED Crypto Checkout – Card to USDC WooCommerce Payment Gateway 100+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #9 3 too high 13 Direct Payments WP – Receive Payments with Forms 50+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #7 6 too high 14 OrderBuster — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #14 15 AfriDirect Payment — · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #11 ↓2 4 too high 16 Wallet Up Checkout for WPForms 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #15 ↓2 1 too high 17 PhilDesigns Clean Invoices — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #19 ↓2 2 too low 18 Dox POS for WooCommerce — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #20 ↓2 2 too low 19 SMS for WooCommerce 50+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #17 ↓2 2 too high 20 FLEX Gold 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #21 ↓2 1 too low 21 SimpleSocial 100+ · 3.0★ (2) wp.org #18 ↓2 3 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.