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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “arrow keys”

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 “arrow keys”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 11 of the top 20. 3 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

Arrow Design Post Publisher for X shows at wp.org #13 but places #24 on merit, a gap of 11 places. Its 70+ installs carry it up the search order; its 0.0★ average from 0 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Modula Image Gallery – Photo Grid & Video Gallery places #12 on merit, 4.7★ from 616 reviews, but shows at wp.org #19. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 TranslatePress – Translate Multilingual sites with AI Translation 400K+ · 4.7★ (1667) wp.org #1 2 Simple Custom Post Order 300K+ · 4.8★ (587) wp.org #2 3 FancyBox for WordPress 30K+ · 4.6★ (92) wp.org #3 4 Button visually impaired 10K+ · 4.9★ (27) wp.org #4 5 Rich Showcase for Google Reviews 100K+ · 4.9★ (1623) wp.org #11 ↑1 6 too low 6 WP Store Locator 40K+ · 4.8★ (312) wp.org #9 ↓1 3 too low 7 Max Mega Menu 300K+ · 4.8★ (882) wp.org #10 ↑1 3 too low 8 Master Slider – Responsive Touch Slider 60K+ · 4.6★ (504) wp.org #6 2 too high 9 Carousel Slider Block for Gutenberg 50K+ · 4.8★ (59) wp.org #7 2 too high 10 Depicter — Popup & Slider Builder 70K+ · 4.6★ (235) wp.org #8 ↑1 2 too high 11 SR Product 360° View 200+ · 4.7★ (23) wp.org #5 6 too high 12 Modula Image Gallery – Photo Grid & Video Gallery 100K+ · 4.7★ (616) wp.org #19 ↓1 7 too low 13 Logo Carousel – Responsive Logo Slider, Logo Showcase, and Clients Logo Gallery 20K+ · 4.7★ (162) wp.org #15 ↑1 2 too low 14 Real Testimonials – Testimonial Slider, Collect Customer Reviews and Video Testimonials 40K+ · 4.7★ (226) wp.org #23 ↓1 9 too low 15 Gutenslider — Slider Block for the Block Editor 10K+ · 4.0★ (65) wp.org #20 5 too low 16 Advanced Accordion Gutenberg Block – Create Beautiful FAQs, Content Accordions & Interactive Tabs 9K+ · 4.1★ (34) wp.org #18 ↓1 2 too low 17 Slider Block by Sliderberg – Slider & Carousel Plugin for Block Editor 2K+ · 5.0★ (7) wp.org #14 3 too high 18 Media Slider for Photos Images Videos 2K+ · 5.0★ (14) wp.org #24 ↓1 6 too low 19 YITH WooCommerce Product Gallery & Image Zoom 10K+ · 3.6★ (71) wp.org #21 2 too low 20 MetaSlider Gallery – Image Gallery, Lightbox Galleries, Video Galleries 10K+ · 4.4★ (9) wp.org #22 ↓3 2 too low 21 Smooth Scrolling 900+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #12 ↓2 9 too high 22 Accessible Carousel & Slider – WCAG AA Compliant Slideshow 500+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #16 ↓1 6 too high 23 Swipe Slider – Make dynamic slider with solid, gradient, or image background 3K+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #17 ↓1 6 too high 24 Arrow Design Post Publisher for X 70+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #13 11 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.