wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “container”
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 “container”, we and wp.org disagree on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 8 of the top 20. 4 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
Page Optimize shows at wp.org #12 but places #23 on merit, a gap of 11 places. Its 200K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 3.0★ average from 5 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
Buried gem
10Web Booster – Website speed optimization, Cache & Page Speed optimizer places #11 on merit, 4.6★ from 405 reviews, but shows at wp.org #20. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.
Premium Addons for Elementor – AI-Ready Elementor Addons, Widgets & Templates 600K+ · 4.9★ (1680)
wp.org #2 ↓1 1 too low 2 
GTM4WP – A Google Tag Manager (GTM) plugin for WordPress 700K+ · 4.5★ (155)
wp.org #3 ↓1 1 too low 3 
Make Column Clickable for Elementor 100K+ · 4.9★ (53)
wp.org #4 1 too low 4 
ECS – Ele Custom Skin for Elementor 100K+ · 4.6★ (117)
wp.org #5 ↑1 1 too low 5 
Addon Elementor Container Link 2K+ · 5.0★ (4) thin reviews
wp.org #1 ↑2 4 too high 6 
Spectra Legacy – Gutenberg Blocks 1M+ · 4.7★ (1872) heavy footprint
wp.org #6 ↓1 7 
Fluent Forms – Customizable Contact Forms, Survey, Quiz, & Conversational Form Builder 800K+ · 4.8★ (807)
wp.org #8 ↓4 1 too low 8 
Smush – Image Optimization, Compression, Lazy Load, WebP & CDN 1M+ · 4.8★ (6053)
wp.org #10 ↑1 2 too low 9 
GenerateBlocks 200K+ · 4.9★ (122)
wp.org #7 ↑1 2 too high 10 
Visibility Logic for Elementor 20K+ · 4.8★ (58)
wp.org #13 ↓1 3 too low 11 10Web Booster – Website speed optimization, Cache & Page Speed optimizer 60K+ · 4.6★ (405)
wp.org #20 9 too low 12 
Carousel Slider Block for Gutenberg 50K+ · 4.8★ (59)
wp.org #14 ↑1 2 too low 13 
GTM Kit – Google Tag Manager & GA4 integration 30K+ · 4.8★ (20) thin reviews
wp.org #9 ↓2 4 too high 14 
Kadence Blocks — Page Builder Toolkit for Gutenberg Editor 600K+ · 4.8★ (333) heavy footprint
wp.org #15 1 too low 15 
Gutenverse – WordPress Blocks, Page Builder & Site Editor 20K+ · 4.9★ (190) heavy footprint
wp.org #19 ↓2 4 too low 16 
Dynamic Visibility for Elementor 50K+ · 4.6★ (89) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #11 ↓2 5 too high 17 
Essential Addons for Elementor – Popular Elementor Templates & Widgets 1M+ · 4.9★ (4132) not PHP-current
wp.org #23 ↓3 6 too low 18 
Bootstrap Blocks 10K+ · 5.0★ (28)
wp.org #16 2 too high 19 
HappyAddons for Elementor – 160 Elementor Widgets, GSAP Animations & Templates 400K+ · 4.8★ (489) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #18 1 too high 20 
Style Kits for Elementor 10K+ · 4.7★ (44)
wp.org #17 ↓3 3 too high 21 
Responsive Gallery Grid 4K+ · 4.7★ (66)
wp.org #24 3 too low 22 
GutenKit – Page Builder Blocks, Patterns, and Templates for Gutenberg Block Editor 80K+ · 4.5★ (48) heavy footprint
wp.org #22 ↓3 23 P Page Optimize 200K+ · 3.0★ (5) host-installed base thin reviews
wp.org #12 ↓2 11 too high 24 
Shape Dividers Plus for Elementor 2K+ · 5.0★ (2) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews
wp.org #21 3 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.