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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “adjust spacers”

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 “adjust spacers”, we and wp.org disagree on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 11 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

Sticky Elementor – Sticky Header, Menu Color After Sticky, Logo Swap & Back to Top Button shows at wp.org #7 but places #18 on merit, a gap of 11 places. Its 600+ 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

Shortcodes Ultimate – Content Elements places #11 on merit, 4.9★ from 5925 reviews, but shows at wp.org #21. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Kadence Blocks — Page Builder Toolkit for Gutenberg Editor 600K+ · 4.8★ (333) wp.org #2 1 too low 2 Flexible Spacer Block 4K+ · 5.0★ (8) wp.org #1 1 too high 3 Twentig Supercharged Block Editor – Blocks, Patterns, Starter Sites, Portfolio 20K+ · 4.9★ (171) wp.org #8 5 too low 4 Kubio AI Page Builder 80K+ · 4.4★ (79) wp.org #4 5 Bit Form – Contact Form, Payment Forms, Multi Step Forms, Calculator & Custom Form Builder 10K+ · 5.0★ (259) wp.org #10 5 too low 6 GutenBee – Gutenberg Blocks 6K+ · 4.9★ (18) wp.org #5 1 too high 7 Stackable – Page Builder Gutenberg Blocks 100K+ · 4.9★ (522) wp.org #12 5 too low 8 VK Blocks 100K+ · 4.8★ (6) wp.org #3 5 too high 9 Mailonix – Email Template Customizer for WooCommerce 20K+ · 4.6★ (105) wp.org #9 10 Ibtana – WordPress Website Builder 10K+ · 4.3★ (30) wp.org #6 4 too high 11 Shortcodes Ultimate – Content Elements 400K+ · 4.9★ (5925) wp.org #21 10 too low 12 Superb Addons: Blocks, Patterns, Pre-built Pages, Sliders, Popups, Free Forms, Animations & More 80K+ · 4.9★ (23) wp.org #15 3 too low 13 aBlocks – Gutenberg Blocks, User Dashboard Builder, Popup Builder, Form Builder & Animation Builder 2K+ · 5.0★ (26) wp.org #14 1 too low 14 TotalSurvey for Survey, Quiz and Form 500+ · 4.6★ (16) wp.org #17 3 too low 15 9MAIL – WordPress Email Templates Designer 200+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #13 2 too high 16 Hash Form – Drag & Drop Form Builder 3K+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #11 5 too high 17 MRW Simplified Editor 100+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #18 1 too low 18 Sticky Elementor – Sticky Header, Menu Color After Sticky, Logo Swap & Back to Top Button 600+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #7 11 too high 19 Responsive Block Controls 60+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #16 3 too high 20 Checkmate PDF Invoices, Packing Slips & Delivery Notes for WooCommerce 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #19 1 too high 21 Texas Hold'em Cards — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #22 1 too low 22 Shed Editor Assist — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #23 1 too low 23 Product Table Builder for WooCommerce – Drag & Drop Product Table, Wholesale Order Form, Quick Order Table — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #24 1 too low 24 DigiBlocks – Professional Gutenberg Block Collection 10+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #20 4 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.