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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “better scrollbar”

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 “better scrollbar”, 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

Hide Scrollbar Force shows at wp.org #3 but places #20 on merit, a gap of 17 places. Its 50+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 1 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

FluentCRM – Email Newsletter, Automation, Email Marketing, Email Campaigns, Optins, Leads, and CRM Solution places #12 on merit, 4.8★ from 250 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 Better Messages – Chat Rooms, Group Chat, Private Messages & AI Chat Bots 10K+ · 4.8★ (142) wp.org #1 2 Kadence Security – Password, Two Factor Authentication, and Brute Force Protection 700K+ · 4.6★ (3992) wp.org #2 3 Ajax Search Lite – Live Search & Filter 70K+ · 4.8★ (266) wp.org #4 ↑2 1 too low 4 Modula Image Gallery – Photo Grid & Video Gallery 100K+ · 4.7★ (616) wp.org #6 ↓1 2 too low 5 Carousel Slider Block for Gutenberg 50K+ · 4.8★ (59) wp.org #5 ↓1 6 Ultimate Blocks – 25+ Gutenberg Blocks for Block Editor 50K+ · 4.9★ (729) wp.org #8 2 too low 7 Dark Mode – Improve Accessibility with AI Powered Dark Theme 20K+ · 4.5★ (391) wp.org #12 ↑1 5 too low 8 WP Rollback – Rollback Plugins and Themes 200K+ · 4.9★ (215) wp.org #13 ↓2 5 too low 9 Darkify – Dark Mode & Night Mode for Website & Admin (Dark Theme Included) 1K+ · 4.7★ (27) wp.org #7 2 too high 10 WP Chat App 100K+ · 4.9★ (222) wp.org #16 6 too low 11 Stackable – Page Builder Gutenberg Blocks 100K+ · 4.9★ (522) wp.org #17 6 too low 12 FluentCRM – Email Newsletter, Automation, Email Marketing, Email Campaigns, Optins, Leads, and CRM Solution 80K+ · 4.8★ (250) wp.org #19 ↑2 7 too low 13 AnimateGL – WebGL & CSS Scroll Animations and Hover Effects for Gutenberg and Elementor 2K+ · 5.0★ (22) wp.org #10 ↑2 3 too high 14 PVT – Product Variation Table for WooCommerce 1K+ · 5.0★ (49) wp.org #14 15 Smooth Page Scroll Up/Down Buttons 2K+ · 5.0★ (21) wp.org #11 ↓1 4 too high 16 Photo Gallery by 10Web – Mobile-Friendly Image Gallery 100K+ · 4.5★ (1581) wp.org #21 ↓2 5 too low 17 WPC Buy Now Button for WooCommerce 10K+ · 4.7★ (15) wp.org #9 8 too high 18 Modal Window – create popup modal window 10K+ · 3.8★ (36) wp.org #15 3 too high 19 WPC Smart Quick View for WooCommerce 80K+ · 4.9★ (31) wp.org #18 1 too high 20 Hide Scrollbar Force 50+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #3 17 too high 21 Product Variation Swatches for WooCommerce – Smart Swatches 700+ · 5.0★ (10) wp.org #23 2 too low 22 Accessible Carousel & Slider – WCAG AA Compliant Slideshow 500+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #22 23 fullPage Vertical & Horizontal Slider – Snap Scroll Sections & More 300+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #24 1 too low 24 StoreBuild – Online Store Builder for WooCommerce 500+ · 5.0★ (3) 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.