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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “cta widget”

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 “cta widget”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 10 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

Experto CTA Widget – Call To Action, Sticky CTA, Floating Button Plugin shows at wp.org #5 but places #21 on merit, a gap of 16 places. Its 80+ installs carry it up the search order; its 4.5★ average from 4 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

PrettyLinks – Affiliate Link Management, URL Shortener, Link Cloaking, Tracking & Branded Short Links places #7 on merit, 4.8★ from 1322 reviews, but shows at wp.org #15. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Premium Addons for Elementor – AI-Ready Elementor Addons, Widgets & Templates 600K+ · 4.9★ (1680) wp.org #1 ↑1 2 Ultimate Addons for Elementor – Widgets, Templates, WooCommerce & Header Footer Builder 2M+ · 4.9★ (2528) wp.org #2 ↑2 3 Widget Options – Advanced Conditional Visibility for Gutenberg Blocks & Classic Widgets 100K+ · 4.9★ (1516) wp.org #3 4 Floating Chat Widget: Contact Chat Icons, Telegram Chat, Line Messenger, WeChat, Email, SMS, Call Button – Chaty 300K+ · 5.0★ (1244) wp.org #7 ↑2 3 too low 5 Tagembed: Social Media Feeds and Customer Reviews Widget 9K+ · 3.9★ (62) wp.org #4 ↑1 1 too high 6 Sticky Chat Widget – Floating Chat Icons, Contact Form, Call, Click to Chat, Email & Message Buttons 10K+ · 5.0★ (39) wp.org #6 ↑2 7 PrettyLinks – Affiliate Link Management, URL Shortener, Link Cloaking, Tracking & Branded Short Links 200K+ · 4.8★ (1322) wp.org #15 ↑1 8 too low 8 Shortcodes Ultimate – Content Elements 400K+ · 4.9★ (5925) wp.org #11 ↑1 3 too low 9 Joinchat – Enhanced “click to chat” 700K+ · 4.7★ (189) wp.org #9 ↓2 10 Royal Addons for Elementor – Addons and Templates Kit for Elementor 600K+ · 4.8★ (612) wp.org #12 ↑3 2 too low 11 HappyAddons for Elementor – 160 Elementor Widgets, GSAP Animations & Templates 400K+ · 4.8★ (489) wp.org #8 ↑3 3 too high 12 Master Addons for Elementor – Elementor Addons, Widgets, Mega Menu Builder, Popup Builder, Widget Builder & Template Kits 30K+ · 4.5★ (212) wp.org #13 1 too low 13 Popup Maker – Boost Sales, Conversions, Optins, Subscribers with the Ultimate WP Popup Builder 600K+ · 4.9★ (4514) wp.org #22 ↑1 9 too low 14 PowerPack Addons for Elementor: Widgets, Form Styler and Templates 70K+ · 4.8★ (361) wp.org #18 4 too low 15 The Plus Addons for Elementor – Mega Menu, Header Footer, Post Grid, AI Widgets & Templates 100K+ · 4.6★ (388) wp.org #20 ↑1 5 too low 16 HT Mega Addons for Elementor – Elementor Widgets & Template Builder 60K+ · 4.1★ (66) wp.org #17 ↑1 1 too low 17 Animation Addons – Elementor Addons, GSAP Animations, Elementor V4 Atomic Widgets & Elementor Templates 10K+ · 4.6★ (66) wp.org #21 ↑1 4 too low 18 Xpro Addons — 150+ Widgets for Elementor 40K+ · 4.4★ (28) wp.org #19 1 too low 19 PushEngage – Web Push Notifications, WooCommerce Automation & Chat Widget 8K+ · 4.3★ (37) wp.org #24 5 too low 20 Taggbox: Social Media Feed Widget 1K+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #10 ↑4 10 too high 21 Experto CTA Widget – Call To Action, Sticky CTA, Floating Button Plugin 80+ · 4.5★ (4) wp.org #5 ↑1 16 too high 22 Flash Toolkit 10K+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #16 ↑1 6 too high 23 Marquee Addons for Elementor – Essential Motion Widgets & Templates 20K+ · 5.0★ (6) wp.org #14 ↑6 9 too high 24 Lead Generation Contact Widget & AI Chatbot: Chat Button, Phone Call, Telegram, Email – SiteLeads 10K+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #23 ↑1 1 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.