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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “zip code”

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

ZIP AI – AI Website Builder & AI Agent shows at wp.org #1 but places #16 on merit, a gap of 15 places. Its 2K+ 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

Folders – Unlimited Folders to Organize Media Library Folder, Pages, Posts, File Manager places #7 on merit, 5.0★ from 1525 reviews, but shows at wp.org #17. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Code Prettify 1K+ · 5.0★ (18) wp.org #2 1 too low 2 TablePress – Tables in WordPress made easy 600K+ · 5.0★ (4625) wp.org #7 ↑4 5 too low 3 Download Plugins and Themes in ZIP from Dashboard 30K+ · 4.9★ (27) wp.org #3 4 WPIDE – File Manager & Code Editor 40K+ · 4.8★ (306) wp.org #10 ↑2 6 too low 5 Business Directory Plugin – Easy Listing & Member Directories for WordPress 10K+ · 4.6★ (504) wp.org #12 ↑5 7 too low 6 Wordfence Security – Firewall, Malware Scan, and Login Security 5M+ · 4.7★ (5039) wp.org #11 ↓2 5 too low 7 Folders – Unlimited Folders to Organize Media Library Folder, Pages, Posts, File Manager 90K+ · 5.0★ (1525) wp.org #17 10 too low 8 WP STAGING – Backups & Restore, Migration & Clone Plugin – Cloud Backups, Scheduled Backups 100K+ · 4.8★ (2470) wp.org #18 10 too low 9 Code Profiler – WordPress Performance Profiling and Debugging Made Easy 8K+ · 4.3★ (36) wp.org #4 5 too high 10 Backup Migration 80K+ · 4.9★ (1338) wp.org #20 ↓7 10 too low 11 Qyrr – simply and modern QR-Code creation 2K+ · 3.8★ (21) wp.org #5 ↑1 6 too high 12 Elementor Website Builder – more than just a page builder 10M+ · 4.5★ (7323) wp.org #14 ↑1 2 too low 13 Duplicator – Backups & Migration Plugin – Cloud Backups, Scheduled Backups, & More 1M+ · 4.9★ (4940) wp.org #13 ↓3 14 File Manager 1M+ · 4.6★ (1492) wp.org #21 ↓2 7 too low 15 WP Coder – Insert & Manage Code Snippets 10K+ · 4.9★ (32) wp.org #15 ↓1 16 ZIP AI – AI Website Builder & AI Agent 2K+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #1 ↑1 15 too high 17 WP 2FA – Two-factor authentication for WordPress 100K+ · 4.7★ (184) wp.org #24 7 too low 18 Product Code for WooCommerce 1K+ · 4.9★ (30) wp.org #16 2 too high 19 Z zipaddr-jp 50K+ · 5.0★ (6) wp.org #9 ↓1 10 too high 20 Post/Page Specific Custom Code 6K+ · 4.6★ (42) wp.org #23 ↓1 3 too low 21 Add Code To Head 2K+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #6 ↓1 15 too high 22 Zip Code Redirect 80+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #8 ↓1 14 too high 23 CodeKit – Custom Codes Editor 7K+ · 4.8★ (16) wp.org #19 ↑2 4 too high 24 Locatoraid Store Locator 1K+ · 4.5★ (17) wp.org #22 ↓2 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.