wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “admin icon”
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 “admin icon”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 8 of the top 20.
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 the install base is organic or host-pushed, and its risk of being pulled.
Ranked above its merit
Hide Admin Icons shows at wp.org #7 but places #22 on merit, a gap of 15 places. Its 100+ 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
Social Share Icons & Social Share Buttons places #9 on merit, 4.9★ from 1911 reviews, but shows at wp.org #20. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.
Admin and Site Enhancements (ASE) 200K+ · 5.0★ (423)
wp.org #1 2 
Admin Menu Editor 300K+ · 4.6★ (312)
wp.org #3 1 too low 3 
The Icon Block 40K+ · 5.0★ (29)
wp.org #2 1 too high 4 
Elementor Website Builder – more than just a page builder 10M+ · 4.5★ (7322)
wp.org #5 ↑1 1 too low 5 
Floating Chat Widget: Contact Chat Icons, Telegram Chat, Line Messenger, WeChat, Email, SMS, Call Button – Chaty 300K+ · 5.0★ (1244)
wp.org #9 ↓1 4 too low 6 
Skyboot Custom Icons for Elementor – Elementor Icons library – 14300+ Icons 200K+ · 5.0★ (22) thin reviews
wp.org #4 2 too high 7 
Admin Custom Login 10K+ · 4.6★ (388)
wp.org #10 ↓1 3 too low 8 
BrikPanel: WooCommerce Dashboard & Analytics, Abandoned Cart Recovery, Order Export, Inventory Management & Bulk Editor 1K+ · 5.0★ (55)
wp.org #8 9 Social Share Icons & Social Share Buttons 10K+ · 4.9★ (1911)
wp.org #20 ↑1 11 too low 10 
WP Custom Admin Interface 30K+ · 4.7★ (160)
wp.org #14 4 too low 11 
View Admin As 9K+ · 4.9★ (49)
wp.org #11 ↓1 12 
User Admin Simplifier 10K+ · 5.0★ (31)
wp.org #13 ↓1 1 too low 13 F Featured Image Admin Thumb 20K+ · 4.7★ (40)
wp.org #15 2 too low 14 
Admin Menu Tree Page View 10K+ · 4.6★ (48)
wp.org #16 2 too low 15 
Admin Bar Editor – Toolbar Customization with User Role based access & Custom menus 3K+ · 4.4★ (24) thin reviews
wp.org #12 ↓1 3 too high 16 
Admin Slug Column 5K+ · 4.9★ (31)
wp.org #17 1 too low 17 
Easy Social Icons 20K+ · 4.4★ (84)
wp.org #21 4 too low 18 
Fuse Social Icons 10K+ · 4.6★ (58)
wp.org #24 ↓1 6 too low 19 
Admin Management Xtended 5K+ · 4.6★ (18) thin reviews
wp.org #19 20 
Icon List Block – Add Icon-Based Lists with Custom Styles 4K+ · 3.7★ (6) thin reviews
wp.org #6 ↓1 14 too high 21 
WPC Admin Columns 1K+ · 5.0★ (4) thin reviews
wp.org #18 3 too high 22 Hide Admin Icons 100+ · 5.0★ (1) thin reviews
wp.org #7 15 too high 23 
Custom Icons for Elementor and WPBakery 10K+ · 5.0★ (1) thin reviews
wp.org #23 ↓3 24 
Hide WP Admin Notifications 3K+ · 5.0★ (1) thin reviews
wp.org #22 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.