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← Rankings

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

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 “block styles”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 12 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

Abs – Additional block styles shows at wp.org #2 but places #16 on merit, a gap of 14 places. Its 400+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 2 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Wordfence Security – Firewall, Malware Scan, and Login Security places #12 on merit, 4.7★ from 5039 reviews, but shows at wp.org #18. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Kadence Blocks — Page Builder Toolkit for Gutenberg Editor 600K+ · 4.8★ (333) wp.org #1 ↑1 2 The Icon Block 40K+ · 5.0★ (29) wp.org #3 1 too low 3 Carousel Slider Block for Gutenberg 50K+ · 4.8★ (59) wp.org #4 ↑1 1 too low 4 Block Visibility — Conditional Visibility Control for the Block Editor 40K+ · 4.9★ (108) wp.org #5 ↑1 1 too low 5 Otter Blocks – Gutenberg Blocks, Page Builder for Gutenberg Editor & FSE 300K+ · 4.7★ (251) wp.org #6 ↓2 1 too low 6 Nexter Blocks – Gutenberg Blocks, Page Builder & AI Website Builder 9K+ · 4.8★ (90) wp.org #8 ↑15 2 too low 7 PublishPress Blocks – Block Controls, Block Visibility, Block Permissions 20K+ · 4.7★ (204) wp.org #12 ↓1 5 too low 8 Elementor Website Builder – more than just a page builder 10M+ · 4.5★ (7322) wp.org #11 ↑5 3 too low 9 Lightbox for Gallery & Image Block 20K+ · 5.0★ (88) wp.org #13 ↓3 4 too low 10 Gravity Booster – Styles & Layouts for Gravity Forms 30K+ · 4.6★ (199) wp.org #14 4 too low 11 Stackable – Page Builder Gutenberg Blocks 100K+ · 4.9★ (522) wp.org #16 ↑1 5 too low 12 Wordfence Security – Firewall, Malware Scan, and Login Security 5M+ · 4.7★ (5039) wp.org #18 ↓9 6 too low 13 SVG Block 4K+ · 5.0★ (14) wp.org #9 ↓1 4 too high 14 Gutenberg Essential Blocks – Page Builder for Gutenberg Blocks & Patterns 100K+ · 4.9★ (216) wp.org #20 6 too low 15 Flexible Table Block 40K+ · 4.9★ (34) wp.org #15 ↑4 16 Abs – Additional block styles 400+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #2 ↓1 14 too high 17 VK Blocks 100K+ · 4.8★ (6) wp.org #7 10 too high 18 Spectra Blocks – AI Website Builder for the Block Editor 60K+ · 4.6★ (53) wp.org #22 ↓7 4 too low 19 Button Block – Stylish buttons that get more clicks 5K+ · 5.0★ (7) wp.org #17 ↑1 2 too high 20 Timeline Block – tell your story with elegant timelines 3K+ · 5.0★ (6) wp.org #24 4 too low 21 Timeline Block For Gutenberg 9K+ · 4.4★ (11) wp.org #23 ↑1 2 too low 22 Icon List Block – Add Icon-Based Lists with Custom Styles 4K+ · 3.7★ (6) wp.org #19 ↓6 3 too high 23 Gmap Block 10K+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #21 2 too high 24 VK Block Patterns 100K+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #10 ↑2 14 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.