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

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 styles”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 13 of the top 20.

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 the install base is organic or host-pushed, and its risk of being pulled.

Ranked above its merit

Advanced Image Hover Effect for Elementor shows at wp.org #8 but places #21 on merit, a gap of 13 places. Its 1K+ 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

Ajax Search Lite – Live Search & Filter places #12 on merit, 4.8★ from 266 reviews, but shows at wp.org #21. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Safelayout Cute Preloader – CSS3 WordPress Preloader 10K+ · 5.0★ (84) wp.org #1 2 Visual CSS Style Editor 30K+ · 4.1★ (90) wp.org #2 3 Slider, Gallery, and Carousel by MetaSlider – Image Slider, Video Slider 500K+ · 4.6★ (743) wp.org #4 1 too low 4 Image Hover Effects – Elementor Addon 40K+ · 4.9★ (83) wp.org #5 1 too low 5 Image Hover Effects Ultimate ( Image Gallery, Effects, Lightbox, Comparison & Magnifier ) 10K+ · 4.7★ (250) wp.org #7 2 too low 6 Master Slider – Responsive Touch Slider 60K+ · 4.6★ (504) wp.org #9 3 too low 7 Portfolio Filter Gallery – Photo Gallery 20K+ · 4.8★ (348) wp.org #10 3 too low 8 MaxButtons – Create buttons 70K+ · 4.9★ (1093) wp.org #13 5 too low 9 WRC Pricing Tables – Responsive CSS3 Pricing Tables 1K+ · 4.2★ (36) wp.org #6 3 too high 10 3D FlipBook – PDF Embedder, PDF Flipbook Viewer, Flipbook Image Gallery 70K+ · 4.8★ (182) wp.org #17 7 too low 11 Flipbox – Awesomes Flip Boxes Image Overlay 9K+ · 4.7★ (149) wp.org #14 ↑1 3 too low 12 Ajax Search Lite – Live Search & Filter 70K+ · 4.8★ (266) wp.org #21 9 too low 13 LoftLoader 70K+ · 4.5★ (33) wp.org #11 2 too high 14 Iptanus File Upload 10K+ · 4.4★ (117) wp.org #18 4 too low 15 BH Custom CSS3 Preloader – Just play and play 700+ · 3.8★ (6) wp.org #3 12 too high 16 Carousel Slider 30K+ · 4.3★ (160) wp.org #20 ↓1 4 too low 17 Gmedia Photo Gallery 7K+ · 4.3★ (260) wp.org #23 ↓2 6 too low 18 Custom Add to Cart Button Label and Link for WooCommerce 2K+ · 4.6★ (27) wp.org #19 ↓1 1 too low 19 WPB Product Slider for WooCommerce – Responsive Product Carousel & Showcase 4K+ · 4.1★ (38) wp.org #22 ↓2 3 too low 20 Hover Effects – easily create any hover effect 7K+ · 4.8★ (17) wp.org #24 ↓1 4 too low 21 Advanced Image Hover Effect for Elementor 1K+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #8 13 too high 22 Scrollbar 300+ · 4.8★ (5) wp.org #16 6 too high 23 SmartText Rotator – Add Motion to Your Words 1K+ · 3.5★ (11) wp.org #15 ↓1 8 too high 24 Serious Slider 20K+ · 3.4★ (8) wp.org #12 12 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.