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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “css3 responsive buttons”

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 responsive buttons”, 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 #8 but places #19 on merit, a gap of 11 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 #11 on merit, 4.8★ from 348 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 MaxButtons – Create buttons 70K+ · 4.9★ (1093) wp.org #1 2 Slider, Gallery, and Carousel by MetaSlider – Image Slider, Video Slider 500K+ · 4.6★ (742) wp.org #2 3 Master Slider – Responsive Touch Slider 60K+ · 4.6★ (504) wp.org #3 ↑2 4 Safelayout Cute Preloader – CSS3 WordPress Preloader 10K+ · 5.0★ (84) wp.org #4 ↓1 5 Image Hover Effects Ultimate ( Image Gallery, Effects, Lightbox, Comparison & Magnifier ) 10K+ · 4.7★ (250) wp.org #9 ↑2 4 too low 6 Button 2K+ · 4.5★ (53) wp.org #6 7 Responsive Lightbox 10K+ · 4.6★ (42) wp.org #7 8 WRC Pricing Tables – Responsive CSS3 Pricing Tables 1K+ · 4.2★ (36) wp.org #5 ↓1 3 too high 9 ShiftNav – Responsive Mobile Menu 10K+ · 4.6★ (68) wp.org #10 1 too low 10 Ajax Search Lite – Live Search & Filter 70K+ · 4.8★ (266) wp.org #16 ↑5 6 too low 11 Portfolio Filter Gallery – Photo Gallery 20K+ · 4.8★ (348) wp.org #18 ↑1 7 too low 12 Flipbox – Awesomes Flip Boxes Image Overlay 9K+ · 4.7★ (149) wp.org #14 ↑1 2 too low 13 Carousel Slider 30K+ · 4.3★ (160) wp.org #12 ↑1 1 too high 14 Image Hover Effects – Elementor Addon 40K+ · 4.9★ (83) wp.org #21 ↓1 7 too low 15 WPB Product Slider for WooCommerce – Responsive Product Carousel & Showcase 4K+ · 4.1★ (38) wp.org #11 ↑1 4 too high 16 Image Photo Gallery Final Tiles Grid 20K+ · 4.7★ (353) wp.org #20 ↓4 4 too low 17 LoftLoader 70K+ · 4.5★ (33) wp.org #19 ↑1 2 too low 18 Slider, Image Slider & Carousel by Slider Factory – Responsive Slideshow, Video Slider 2K+ · 4.5★ (13) wp.org #13 ↑1 5 too high 19 Safelayout Brilliant Buttons – WordPress Buttons 100+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #8 11 too high 20 WPB Category Slider for WooCommerce – Responsive Product Category Carousel & Enhanced UX 700+ · 4.1★ (9) wp.org #15 ↑2 5 too high 21 Serious Slider 20K+ · 3.4★ (8) wp.org #17 ↑1 4 too high 22 Advanced Image Hover Effect for Elementor 1K+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #22 ↑2 23 peLightbox Gallery Slider – Responsive Lightbox, Slideshow, Carousel, Image & Video Gallery 200+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #23 24 SGS Social Sharing Buttons 20+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #24 ↑2

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.