wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “admin themes”
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 themes”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 10 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
CiviCRM Admin Utilities shows at wp.org #15 but places #22 on merit, a gap of 7 places. Its 1K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 6 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
Buried gem
Theme Check places #12 on merit, 4.8★ from 195 reviews, but shows at wp.org #18. 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 #2 3 
Photo Gallery, Sliders, Proofing and Themes – NextGEN Gallery 300K+ · 4.3★ (4342)
wp.org #3 4 
Disable Admin Notices – Hide Dashboard Notifications 100K+ · 4.7★ (367)
wp.org #4 5 
Admin Custom Login 10K+ · 4.6★ (388)
wp.org #7 2 too low 6 
BrikPanel: WooCommerce Dashboard & Analytics, Abandoned Cart Recovery, Order Export, Inventory Management & Bulk Editor 1K+ · 5.0★ (55)
wp.org #6 7 
WP Rollback – Rollback Plugins and Themes 200K+ · 4.9★ (215)
wp.org #10 3 too low 8 
Wordfence Security – Firewall, Malware Scan, and Login Security 5M+ · 4.7★ (5040)
wp.org #13 5 too low 9 
Controlled Admin Access 10K+ · 4.8★ (45)
wp.org #9 10 
UiPress lite | Effortless custom dashboards, admin themes and pages 6K+ · 4.1★ (21) thin reviews
wp.org #5 5 too high 11 
View Admin As 9K+ · 4.9★ (49)
wp.org #11 12 Theme Check 20K+ · 4.8★ (195)
wp.org #18 6 too low 13 
Admin Bar Editor – Toolbar Customization with User Role based access & Custom menus 3K+ · 4.4★ (24) thin reviews
wp.org #8 5 too high 14 
WooCommerce 7M+ · 4.5★ (4833)
wp.org #23 9 too low 15 
User Admin Simplifier 10K+ · 5.0★ (31)
wp.org #14 1 too high 16 
Admin Notices Manager 10K+ · 4.9★ (21) thin reviews
wp.org #12 4 too high 17 
Theme My Login 50K+ · 3.7★ (460)
wp.org #22 5 too low 18 
Admin Menu Tree Page View 10K+ · 4.6★ (48)
wp.org #19 1 too low 19 
Xpro Theme Builder For Elementor – FREE 20K+ · 5.0★ (14) thin reviews
wp.org #16 3 too high 20 
Admin Management Xtended 5K+ · 4.6★ (18) thin reviews
wp.org #21 1 too low 21 
Generate Child Theme 9K+ · 4.3★ (15) thin reviews
wp.org #17 4 too high 22 CiviCRM Admin Utilities 1K+ · 5.0★ (6) thin reviews
wp.org #15 7 too high 23 
Double Youpï Refined Admin Dashboard – Admin Theme with Dark Mode & Media Folders 80+ · 5.0★ (5) thin reviews
wp.org #24 1 too low 24 
WPC Admin Columns 1K+ · 5.0★ (4) thin reviews
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.