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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “cascading dropdowns”

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 “cascading dropdowns”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 9 of the top 20. 1 plugin is 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

Auto Populate Country/State/City/Ward DropDown Addon for Gravity Forms shows at wp.org #11 but places #24 on merit, a gap of 13 places. Its 20+ installs carry it up the search order; its 1.0★ average from 1 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

The Plus Addons for Elementor – Mega Menu, Header Footer, Post Grid, AI Widgets & Templates places #4 on merit, 4.6★ from 388 reviews, but shows at wp.org #9. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Formidable Forms – Contact Form, Survey, Quiz, Payment, Calculator Form & Custom Form Builder 300K+ · 4.8★ (1387) wp.org #1 2 Agile Store Locator 10K+ · 4.9★ (59) wp.org #2 3 WS Form LITE – Drag & Drop Contact Form Builder 10K+ · 5.0★ (322) wp.org #5 2 too low 4 The Plus Addons for Elementor – Mega Menu, Header Footer, Post Grid, AI Widgets & Templates 100K+ · 4.6★ (388) wp.org #9 5 too low 5 Ollie Menu Designer 6K+ · 5.0★ (8) wp.org #3 2 too high 6 Gallery Block by Galleryberg: Lightbox with Tiles, Masonry, Square, & Justified Layouts 2K+ · 5.0★ (9) wp.org #6 7 Widget Visibility Control 200+ · 5.0★ (6) wp.org #12 5 too low 8 OptionWeave Cascading Dropdowns for Forminator — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #4 4 too high 9 Multi Location Product & Inventory Management for WooCommerce 100+ · 5.0★ (6) wp.org #17 ↓1 8 too low 10 SimpleForm – Form Maker to Chat Apps with Quiz, Poll and Multi Lead Notifications 20+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #15 5 too low 11 E Elmspur Cascade – Dropdown Redirect 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #8 3 too high 12 Cascading Mega Menu for Elementor 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #10 2 too high 13 Thinqmagic Country State City Dropdown for WPForms — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #14 1 too low 14 Mosaic Gallery – Advanced Gallery 3K+ · 4.0★ (2) wp.org #7 7 too high 15 BD Address Fields for WooCommerce 20+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #16 ↑2 1 too low 16 Riders Delivery for WooCommerce — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #18 ↓1 2 too low 17 SmartTR Address — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #19 ↑1 2 too low 18 Chained Selects for Elementor Forms 50+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #13 5 too high 19 Advanced Customer Account for WooCommerce 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #20 ↓1 1 too low 20 Nepal Dependent Address Dropdown — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #21 1 too low 21 Mydybox Taiwan for WooCommerce (台灣商店：核心助手) 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #22 1 too low 22 G GarageFit Search for WooCommerce — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #23 1 too low 23 Serend Animations 60+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #24 1 too low 24 Auto Populate Country/State/City/Ward DropDown Addon for Gravity Forms 20+ · 1.0★ (1) wp.org #11 13 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.