Plugin Pulse Beta
← Rankings

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

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 widget”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 7 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

GR Widget – Google Reviews Widget shows at wp.org #9 but places #18 on merit, a gap of 9 places. Its 900+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 10 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Ultimate Addons for Elementor – Widgets, Templates, WooCommerce & Header Footer Builder places #11 on merit, 4.9★ from 2528 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 Admin and Site Enhancements (ASE) 200K+ · 5.0★ (423) wp.org #1 2 Widgets for Google Reviews 1M+ · 4.9★ (2667) wp.org #2 3 Essential Addons for Elementor – Popular Elementor Templates & Widgets 1M+ · 4.9★ (4132) wp.org #3 ↑2 4 Admin Menu Editor 300K+ · 4.6★ (312) wp.org #4 ↓1 5 ElementsKit Elementor Addons – Advanced Widgets & Templates Addons for Elementor 1M+ · 4.9★ (2051) wp.org #5 ↓1 6 Disable Admin Notices – Hide Dashboard Notifications 100K+ · 4.7★ (367) wp.org #6 7 Premium Addons for Elementor – AI-Ready Elementor Addons, Widgets & Templates 600K+ · 4.9★ (1680) wp.org #8 1 too low 8 Rich Showcase for Google Reviews 100K+ · 4.9★ (1623) wp.org #13 ↑1 5 too low 9 Widget Options – Advanced Conditional Visibility for Gutenberg Blocks & Classic Widgets 100K+ · 4.9★ (1516) wp.org #14 ↓1 5 too low 10 Recent Posts Widget With Thumbnails 100K+ · 4.8★ (215) wp.org #12 ↓3 2 too low 11 Ultimate Addons for Elementor – Widgets, Templates, WooCommerce & Header Footer Builder 2M+ · 4.9★ (2528) wp.org #17 ↑5 6 too low 12 Widget Context 30K+ · 4.5★ (98) wp.org #7 5 too high 13 Black Studio TinyMCE Widget 200K+ · 4.8★ (191) wp.org #15 2 too low 14 Elementor Website Builder – more than just a page builder 10M+ · 4.5★ (7323) wp.org #16 2 too low 15 Widgets for Social Photo Feed 10K+ · 4.7★ (28) wp.org #11 4 too high 16 BrikPanel: WooCommerce Dashboard & Analytics, Abandoned Cart Recovery, Order Export, Inventory Management & Bulk Editor 1K+ · 5.0★ (55) wp.org #10 ↑2 6 too high 17 Controlled Admin Access 10K+ · 4.8★ (45) wp.org #18 ↓1 1 too low 18 GR Widget – Google Reviews Widget 900+ · 5.0★ (10) wp.org #9 ↑1 9 too high 19 AccessiYes Accessibility Widget for ADA, EAA & WCAG Readiness 20K+ · 4.8★ (36) wp.org #19 ↓1 20 WP Custom Admin Interface 30K+ · 4.7★ (160) wp.org #20 21 Widget Disable 10K+ · 4.8★ (24) wp.org #23 ↑1 2 too low 22 Tagembed: Social Media Feeds and Customer Reviews Widget 9K+ · 3.9★ (62) wp.org #21 ↓1 1 too high 23 Admin Menu Search 3K+ · 4.9★ (14) wp.org #22 ↓3 1 too high 24 Customize Admin 3K+ · 3.6★ (5) wp.org #24 ↓1

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.