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← Rankings

wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “admin toolbar”

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 toolbar”, we and wp.org disagree on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 11 of the top 20. 1 plugin is 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

Hide Admin Bar Based on User Roles – Disable the WordPress Toolbar by Role or Capability shows at wp.org #6 but places #13 on merit, a gap of 7 places. Its 20K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 3.9★ average from 20 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Sticky Menu & Sticky Header places #12 on merit, 4.7★ from 763 reviews, but shows at wp.org #23. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Admin Menu Editor 300K+ · 4.6★ (312) wp.org #2 1 too low 2 Bottom Admin Toolbar 1K+ · 4.5★ (8) wp.org #1 1 too high 3 Admin Bar Editor – Toolbar Customization with User Role based access & Custom menus 3K+ · 4.4★ (24) wp.org #3 4 BrikPanel: WooCommerce Dashboard & Analytics, Abandoned Cart Recovery, Order Export, Inventory Management & Bulk Editor 1K+ · 5.0★ (55) wp.org #4 ↑1 5 WP Custom Admin Interface 30K+ · 4.7★ (160) wp.org #5 ↓1 6 PublishPress Capabilities: User Role Access Control, Admin Area Permissions 90K+ · 4.7★ (143) wp.org #10 4 too low 7 Query Monitor 200K+ · 4.9★ (470) wp.org #16 ↓4 9 too low 8 View Admin As 9K+ · 4.9★ (49) wp.org #9 1 too low 9 Hide Admin Bar from Non-Admins 10K+ · 4.3★ (30) wp.org #7 2 too high 10 Accessibility Widget by OneTap – Easy One-Click Accessibility Toolbar 60K+ · 4.9★ (80) wp.org #13 ↑1 3 too low 11 Admin Notices Manager 10K+ · 4.9★ (21) wp.org #8 3 too high 12 Sticky Menu & Sticky Header 90K+ · 4.7★ (763) wp.org #23 ↓4 11 too low 13 Hide Admin Bar Based on User Roles – Disable the WordPress Toolbar by Role or Capability 20K+ · 3.9★ (20) wp.org #6 7 too high 14 Super Page Cache – Cloudflare Cache, Page Speed & Core Web Vitals 70K+ · 4.8★ (517) wp.org #24 10 too low 15 Auto Hide Admin Bar 3K+ · 4.8★ (32) wp.org #11 4 too high 16 Simple Membership 40K+ · 4.6★ (475) wp.org #21 5 too low 17 My WP Customize Admin/Frontend 8K+ · 4.3★ (16) wp.org #12 ↑1 5 too high 18 A Admin Bar & Dashboard Access Control 3K+ · 4.7★ (18) wp.org #19 ↑1 1 too low 19 Admin Help Docs 600+ · 5.0★ (9) wp.org #18 ↑3 1 too high 20 Default Admin Color Scheme 800+ · 4.7★ (9) wp.org #22 ↑1 2 too low 21 Remove Admin Bar logo 1K+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #14 ↑1 7 too high 22 MM Admin Bar Manager 100+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #15 ↑1 7 too high 23 User Profile Picture – Custom Local Avatars 4K+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #20 3 too high 24 Admin Toolbar Live Clock 20+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #17 ↑1 7 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.