Plugin Pulse Beta
← Rankings

wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “bookmark button”

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 “bookmark button”, we and wp.org disagree on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 13 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

Add Follow Button For Pintrest shows at wp.org #4 but places #23 on merit, a gap of 19 places. Its 400+ installs carry it up the search order; its 3.5★ average from 2 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

3D FlipBook – PDF Embedder, PDF Flipbook Viewer, Flipbook Image Gallery places #7 on merit, 4.8★ from 182 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 Ultimate Member – User Profile, Registration, Login, Member Directory, Content Restriction & Membership Plugin 200K+ · 4.4★ (1445) wp.org #2 1 too low 2 CBX Bookmark & Favorite 1K+ · 4.6★ (49) wp.org #1 1 too high 3 Hubbub Lite – Fast, free social sharing and follow buttons 30K+ · 4.7★ (173) wp.org #7 4 too low 4 Nobs • Share Buttons 3K+ · 4.7★ (93) wp.org #6 2 too low 5 Favicon by RealFaviconGenerator 200K+ · 4.9★ (802) wp.org #11 6 too low 6 Meta Field Block – Display Custom Fields for ACF, Meta Box and More 10K+ · 5.0★ (57) wp.org #8 2 too low 7 3D FlipBook – PDF Embedder, PDF Flipbook Viewer, Flipbook Image Gallery 70K+ · 4.8★ (182) wp.org #14 ↑1 7 too low 8 Favorites 10K+ · 4.6★ (133) wp.org #12 ↑1 4 too low 9 Copy Anything to Clipboard for WordPress – Copy Button, Copy Text & Copy Code 10K+ · 4.5★ (36) wp.org #9 10 Scriptless Social Sharing 10K+ · 5.0★ (70) wp.org #17 7 too low 11 SiteOrigin Widgets Bundle 400K+ · 4.9★ (134) wp.org #18 7 too low 12 Sticky Buttons – Floating Buttons Builder 10K+ · 3.7★ (6) wp.org #3 9 too high 13 Simple Link Directory – AI Powered 2K+ · 4.8★ (121) wp.org #20 ↑1 7 too low 14 MoreConvert Wishlist for WooCommerce 8K+ · 4.9★ (120) wp.org #21 ↑1 7 too low 15 VK All in One Expansion Unit 100K+ · 4.0★ (7) wp.org #5 10 too high 16 Better Post & Filter Widgets for Elementor 4K+ · 5.0★ (18) wp.org #15 ↓3 1 too high 17 Side Menu Lite – Sticky Floating Side Menu 7K+ · 4.0★ (12) wp.org #13 ↑1 4 too high 18 NextScripts: Social Networks Auto-Poster 20K+ · 3.3★ (617) wp.org #24 6 too low 19 Crowdsignal Dashboard – Polls, Surveys & more 200K+ · 2.7★ (34) wp.org #10 9 too high 20 Webmention 900+ · 5.0★ (8) wp.org #22 ↑1 2 too low 21 NETSENSAI Shield 1K+ · 5.0★ (5) wp.org #19 ↑1 2 too high 22 SaveTo Wishlist Lite – WooCommerce Wishlist 500+ · 4.2★ (11) wp.org #23 ↑1 1 too low 23 Add Follow Button For Pintrest 400+ · 3.5★ (2) wp.org #4 19 too high 24 HametuPack 30+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #16 8 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.