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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “breakpoints”

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 “breakpoints”, we agree with wp.org 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

Image Prioritizer shows at wp.org #5 but places #24 on merit, a gap of 19 places. Its 40K+ 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

Responsive Menu – Mobile Menu & Hamburger Menu Builder places #9 on merit, 4.5★ from 574 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 Elementor Website Builder – more than just a page builder 10M+ · 4.5★ (7323) wp.org #1 2 Max Mega Menu 300K+ · 4.8★ (882) wp.org #3 1 too low 3 Modula Image Gallery – Photo Grid & Video Gallery 100K+ · 4.7★ (616) wp.org #8 ↑3 5 too low 4 Bootstrap Blocks 10K+ · 5.0★ (28) wp.org #6 2 too low 5 Smart Slider 3 800K+ · 4.9★ (1125) wp.org #11 ↑3 6 too low 6 ECS – Ele Custom Skin for Elementor 100K+ · 4.6★ (117) wp.org #10 ↑6 4 too low 7 YMC Filter 4K+ · 4.8★ (34) wp.org #7 ↓3 8 Better Block Editor (BBE) 6K+ · 5.0★ (11) wp.org #4 ↑3 4 too high 9 Responsive Menu – Mobile Menu & Hamburger Menu Builder 70K+ · 4.5★ (574) wp.org #18 9 too low 10 AddToAny Share Buttons 300K+ · 4.7★ (1114) wp.org #14 ↓2 4 too low 11 Flexible Table Block 40K+ · 4.9★ (34) wp.org #12 ↓2 1 too low 12 AnWP Post Grid and Post Carousel Slider for Elementor 20K+ · 4.9★ (84) wp.org #17 5 too low 13 Easy Accordion – AI-Powered FAQ & Accordion Blocks, Product FAQ 70K+ · 4.9★ (358) wp.org #24 ↓5 11 too low 14 Custom Breakpoints for Elementor 300+ · 2.2★ (13) wp.org #2 12 too high 15 Gutenverse – WordPress Blocks, Page Builder & Site Editor 20K+ · 4.9★ (190) wp.org #20 ↓2 5 too low 16 Equal Height Columns 10K+ · 4.9★ (41) wp.org #16 ↓3 17 GutenKit – Page Builder Blocks, Patterns, and Templates for Gutenberg Block Editor 80K+ · 4.5★ (48) wp.org #13 ↓4 4 too high 18 Greenshift – animation and page builder blocks 70K+ · 4.8★ (107) wp.org #19 ↑1 1 too low 19 Flexible Spacer Block 4K+ · 5.0★ (8) wp.org #15 4 too high 20 Better Post & Filter Widgets for Elementor 4K+ · 5.0★ (18) wp.org #23 ↑1 3 too low 21 Block Enhancements – Extended styling for the Block Editor 900+ · 5.0★ (8) wp.org #22 1 too low 22 Block Responsive – Make Editor Blocks Responsive Easily 800+ · 5.0★ (7) wp.org #21 1 too high 23 Responsive Visibility — Show or Hide Blocks by Device, Custom Breakpoints & Conditions 100+ · 4.5★ (2) wp.org #9 ↓1 14 too high 24 Image Prioritizer 40K+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #5 19 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.