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

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 theme”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 8 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

VK Block Patterns shows at wp.org #14 but places #24 on merit, a gap of 10 places. Its 100K+ 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

Gutenverse – WordPress Blocks, Page Builder & Site Editor places #12 on merit, 4.9★ from 190 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 Create Block Theme 20K+ · 4.8★ (38) wp.org #1 2 Wordfence Security – Firewall, Malware Scan, and Login Security 5M+ · 4.7★ (5039) wp.org #2 3 Spectra Legacy – Gutenberg Blocks 1M+ · 4.7★ (1872) wp.org #4 ↓1 1 too low 4 Photo Gallery, Sliders, Proofing and Themes – NextGEN Gallery 300K+ · 4.3★ (4342) wp.org #5 1 too low 5 Xpro Theme Builder For Elementor – FREE 20K+ · 5.0★ (14) wp.org #3 ↑1 2 too high 6 Kadence Blocks — Page Builder Toolkit for Gutenberg Editor 600K+ · 4.8★ (333) wp.org #6 ↑9 7 The Icon Block 40K+ · 5.0★ (29) wp.org #7 ↑2 8 Carousel Slider Block for Gutenberg 50K+ · 4.8★ (59) wp.org #9 ↓3 1 too low 9 Block Visibility — Conditional Visibility Control for the Block Editor 40K+ · 4.9★ (108) wp.org #11 ↓1 2 too low 10 Theme My Login 50K+ · 3.7★ (460) wp.org #10 ↓3 11 WP Rollback – Rollback Plugins and Themes 200K+ · 4.9★ (215) wp.org #15 ↓2 4 too low 12 Gutenverse – WordPress Blocks, Page Builder & Site Editor 20K+ · 4.9★ (190) wp.org #17 ↓5 5 too low 13 Theme Switcha – Easily Switch Themes for Development and Testing 7K+ · 4.4★ (63) wp.org #12 ↓4 1 too high 14 Otter Blocks – Gutenberg Blocks, Page Builder for Gutenberg Editor & FSE 300K+ · 4.7★ (251) wp.org #19 ↓3 5 too low 15 Nexter Blocks – Gutenberg Blocks, Page Builder & AI Website Builder 9K+ · 4.8★ (90) wp.org #18 3 too low 16 Better Block Editor (BBE) 6K+ · 5.0★ (11) wp.org #8 ↑6 8 too high 17 WooCommerce 7M+ · 4.5★ (4833) wp.org #20 ↓3 3 too low 18 SVG Block 4K+ · 5.0★ (14) wp.org #16 ↑4 2 too high 19 Enable bbPress for Block Themes 200+ · 5.0★ (5) wp.org #13 ↓2 6 too high 20 Button Block – Stylish buttons that get more clicks 5K+ · 5.0★ (7) wp.org #24 4 too low 21 Video Popup Block – YouTube, Vimeo, TikTok Lightbox by WPZOOM 10K+ · 4.7★ (6) wp.org #23 ↓2 2 too low 22 Options for Block Themes 300+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #21 ↑1 1 too high 23 Gmap Block 10K+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #22 ↑1 1 too high 24 VK Block Patterns 100K+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #14 ↑4 10 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.