wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “container queries”
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 queries”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 9 of the top 20. 5 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 #7 but places #24 on merit, a gap of 17 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
Calculated Fields Form – AI Form Builder for WordPress – Contact, Payment, Quote, Quiz & More places #10 on merit, 4.9★ from 973 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.
Premium Addons for Elementor – AI-Ready Elementor Addons, Widgets & Templates 600K+ · 4.9★ (1680)
wp.org #1 2 
GenerateBlocks 200K+ · 4.9★ (122)
wp.org #2 3 
Kadence Blocks — Page Builder Toolkit for Gutenberg Editor 600K+ · 4.8★ (333) heavy footprint
wp.org #3 ↑1 4 
Fluent Forms – Customizable Contact Forms, Survey, Quiz, & Conversational Form Builder 800K+ · 4.8★ (807)
wp.org #5 ↓2 1 too low 5 
ECS – Ele Custom Skin for Elementor 100K+ · 4.6★ (117)
wp.org #4 ↑1 1 too high 6 
Spectra Legacy – Gutenberg Blocks 1M+ · 4.7★ (1872) heavy footprint
wp.org #6 ↑1 7 
Ajax Load More – Infinite Scroll, Load More, & Lazy Load 30K+ · 4.8★ (287)
wp.org #10 3 too low 8 
Smush – Image Optimization, Compression, Lazy Load, WebP & CDN 1M+ · 4.8★ (6053)
wp.org #12 ↓1 4 too low 9 
Visibility Logic for Elementor 20K+ · 4.8★ (58)
wp.org #9 10 Calculated Fields Form – AI Form Builder for WordPress – Contact, Payment, Quote, Quiz & More 40K+ · 4.9★ (973)
wp.org #17 ↑3 7 too low 11 
W3 Total Cache 900K+ · 4.4★ (5420)
wp.org #16 ↑1 5 too low 12 
WP Data Access – App Builder for Tables, Forms, Dashboards, Charts & Maps 10K+ · 4.9★ (88)
wp.org #13 ↑3 1 too low 13 
Gutenberg Essential Blocks – Page Builder for Gutenberg Blocks & Patterns 100K+ · 4.9★ (216) heavy footprint
wp.org #14 ↓1 1 too low 14 
Smash Balloon Social Photo Feed – Easy Social Feeds Plugin 1M+ · 4.9★ (4358)
wp.org #22 ↓7 8 too low 15 
GutenKit – Page Builder Blocks, Patterns, and Templates for Gutenberg Block Editor 80K+ · 4.5★ (48) heavy footprint
wp.org #11 ↑1 4 too high 16 
Essential Addons for Elementor – Popular Elementor Templates & Widgets 1M+ · 4.9★ (4132) not PHP-current
wp.org #23 ↑1 7 too low 17 
Gutenverse – WordPress Blocks, Page Builder & Site Editor 20K+ · 4.9★ (190) heavy footprint
wp.org #24 ↓1 7 too low 18 
Meta Field Block – Display Custom Fields for ACF, Meta Box and More 10K+ · 5.0★ (57) not PHP-current
wp.org #18 19 
Product Slider, Product Grid, Product Masonry 9K+ · 4.3★ (86)
wp.org #19 20 
HappyAddons for Elementor – 160 Elementor Widgets, GSAP Animations & Templates 400K+ · 4.8★ (489) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #21 ↑1 1 too low 21 
Dynamic Visibility for Elementor 50K+ · 4.6★ (89) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #15 ↓1 6 too high 22 
Contact Form Widget – Responsive Contact Form, Query Form & Form Builder 1K+ · 5.0★ (10) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews
wp.org #8 14 too high 23 
Greenshift – animation and page builder blocks 70K+ · 4.8★ (107) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #20 ↑1 3 too high 24 P Page Optimize 200K+ · 3.0★ (5) host-installed base thin reviews
wp.org #7 ↓1 17 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.