Plugin Pulse Beta
← Rankings

wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “author block”

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 “author block”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 8 of the top 20. 5 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

VK Post Author Display shows at wp.org #10 but places #17 on merit, a gap of 7 places. Its 10K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 4.5★ average from 8 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

PublishPress Blocks – Block Controls, Block Visibility, Block Permissions places #10 on merit, 4.7★ from 204 reviews, but shows at wp.org #14. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Co-Authors, Multiple Authors and Guest Authors in an Author Box with PublishPress Authors 20K+ · 4.9★ (114) wp.org #1 2 Spectra Legacy – Gutenberg Blocks 1M+ · 4.7★ (1872) wp.org #3 ↑1 1 too low 3 Simple Author Box 90K+ · 4.3★ (115) wp.org #2 1 too high 4 Author Avatars List/Block 4K+ · 4.8★ (32) wp.org #4 ↓1 5 Block Visibility — Conditional Visibility Control for the Block Editor 40K+ · 4.9★ (108) wp.org #7 2 too low 6 Molongui Authorship – Author Boxes, Guest Authors & Co-Authors for WordPress 10K+ · 4.7★ (158) wp.org #8 ↓2 2 too low 7 The Icon Block 40K+ · 5.0★ (29) wp.org #6 ↓1 1 too high 8 All in One SEO – AI SEO Plugin to Boost SEO Rankings & Traffic (Schema, Local SEO, Sitemap & SEO Insights) 2M+ · 4.7★ (5231) wp.org #9 1 too low 9 WP Post Author – Author Box, Multiple Authors, Guest Authors & Custom Avatars 10K+ · 4.2★ (22) wp.org #5 ↑3 4 too high 10 PublishPress Blocks – Block Controls, Block Visibility, Block Permissions 20K+ · 4.7★ (204) wp.org #14 ↓3 4 too low 11 Gutenberg Essential Blocks – Page Builder for Gutenberg Blocks & Patterns 100K+ · 4.9★ (216) wp.org #13 ↑6 2 too low 12 Nexter Blocks – Gutenberg Blocks, Page Builder & AI Website Builder 9K+ · 4.8★ (90) wp.org #11 ↑4 1 too high 13 Elementor Website Builder – more than just a page builder 10M+ · 4.5★ (7323) wp.org #15 ↑3 2 too low 14 BBQ Firewall – Fast & Powerful Firewall Security 100K+ · 4.9★ (160) wp.org #19 ↑1 5 too low 15 SimpLy Gallery 40K+ · 4.8★ (118) wp.org #24 9 too low 16 Author Box WP Lens 900+ · 5.0★ (12) wp.org #12 ↑10 4 too high 17 VK Post Author Display 10K+ · 4.5★ (8) wp.org #10 7 too high 18 Co-Authors Plus 20K+ · 3.5★ (77) wp.org #21 ↓5 3 too low 19 Osom Author Pro 1K+ · 4.9★ (10) wp.org #17 ↓4 2 too high 20 Breadcrumb Block 2K+ · 5.0★ (14) wp.org #22 ↓8 2 too low 21 Timeline Block – tell your story with elegant timelines 3K+ · 5.0★ (6) wp.org #16 ↓4 5 too high 22 Advanced Post Block – Display Your Posts Exactly How You Want 10K+ · 4.2★ (17) wp.org #18 ↑3 4 too high 23 VK Blocks 100K+ · 4.8★ (6) wp.org #20 ↑3 3 too high 24 Easy Tabs Block – Smart, Lightweight & Responsive Tabs for the Block Editor 1K+ · 5.0★ (5) wp.org #23 ↑1 1 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.