wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “css3 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 “css3 button”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 10 of the top 20. 2 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

Safelayout Brilliant Buttons – WordPress Buttons shows at wp.org #11 but places #20 on merit, a gap of 9 places. Its 100+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 3 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Portfolio Filter Gallery – Photo Gallery places #7 on merit, 4.8★ from 348 reviews, but shows at wp.org #13. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin signals wp.org

MaxButtons – Create buttons 70K+ · 4.9★ (1093) wp.org #1 2

Button 2K+ · 4.5★ (53) wp.org #2 3

Safelayout Cute Preloader – CSS3 WordPress Preloader 10K+ · 5.0★ (84) wp.org #3 4

Slider, Gallery, and Carousel by MetaSlider – Image Slider, Video Slider 500K+ · 4.6★ (743) wp.org #5 1 too low 5

Animate It! 20K+ · 4.9★ (127) wp.org #7 2 too low 6

Image Hover Effects Ultimate ( Image Gallery, Effects, Lightbox, Comparison & Magnifier ) 10K+ · 4.7★ (250) wp.org #8 2 too low 7

Portfolio Filter Gallery – Photo Gallery 20K+ · 4.8★ (348) wp.org #13 ↓1 6 too low 8

Custom Add to Cart Button Label and Link for WooCommerce 2K+ · 4.6★ (27) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #4 4 too high 9

Master Slider – Responsive Touch Slider 60K+ · 4.6★ (504) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #10 ↑3 1 too low 10

WRC Pricing Tables – Responsive CSS3 Pricing Tables 1K+ · 4.2★ (36) wp.org #6 4 too high 11

Carousel Slider 30K+ · 4.3★ (160) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #9 2 too high 12

Flipbox – Awesomes Flip Boxes Image Overlay 9K+ · 4.7★ (149) wp.org #16 4 too low 13

Ajax Search Lite – Live Search & Filter 70K+ · 4.8★ (266) wp.org #21 ↑3 8 too low 14

Image Hover Effects – Elementor Addon 40K+ · 4.9★ (83) wp.org #18 ↑1 4 too low 15

Iptanus File Upload 10K+ · 4.4★ (117) wp.org #19 ↑4 4 too low 16

LoftLoader 70K+ · 4.5★ (33) wp.org #15 1 too high 17

Hover Effects – easily create any hover effect 7K+ · 4.8★ (17) thin reviews wp.org #12 ↓1 5 too high 18

Image Photo Gallery Final Tiles Grid 20K+ · 4.7★ (353) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #22 ↓4 4 too low 19

Off-Canvas Sidebars & Menus (Slidebars) 1K+ · 4.8★ (38) wp.org #20 1 too low 20

Safelayout Brilliant Buttons – WordPress Buttons 100+ · 5.0★ (3) thin reviews wp.org #11 ↓1 9 too high 21

SmartText Rotator – Add Motion to Your Words 1K+ · 3.5★ (11) thin reviews wp.org #17 4 too high 22

Serious Slider 20K+ · 3.4★ (8) thin reviews wp.org #14 8 too high 23

Advanced Image Hover Effect for Elementor 1K+ · 5.0★ (3) thin reviews wp.org #24 ↓2 1 too low 24

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.