wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “custom blocks”
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 “custom blocks”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 5 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
VK Blocks shows at wp.org #13 but places #23 on merit, a gap of 10 places. Its 100K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 4.8★ average from 6 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
Kadence Blocks — Page Builder Toolkit for Gutenberg Editor 600K+ · 4.8★ (333) heavy footprint
wp.org #1 2 
Advanced Custom Fields (ACF®) 2M+ · 4.5★ (1440) heavy footprint
wp.org #2 3 
Otter Blocks – Gutenberg Blocks, Page Builder for Gutenberg Editor & FSE 300K+ · 4.7★ (251) heavy footprint
wp.org #3 4 
Forminator Forms – Contact Form, Payment Form & Custom Form Builder 600K+ · 4.8★ (2144)
wp.org #5 ↓1 1 too low 5 
Ultimate Blocks – 25+ Gutenberg Blocks for Block Editor 50K+ · 4.9★ (729) not PHP-current
wp.org #7 ↓1 2 too low 6 
Genesis Custom Blocks 10K+ · 4.5★ (21) thin reviews
wp.org #4 ↑1 2 too high 7 
Simple Custom CSS and JS 600K+ · 4.4★ (104)
wp.org #6 ↑1 1 too high 8 
Gutenberg Essential Blocks – Page Builder for Gutenberg Blocks & Patterns 100K+ · 4.9★ (216) heavy footprint
wp.org #9 ↑6 1 too low 9 
Custom Post Type UI 1M+ · 4.6★ (276)
wp.org #8 ↑3 1 too high 10 
Spectra Legacy – Gutenberg Blocks 1M+ · 4.7★ (1872) heavy footprint
wp.org #11 ↑3 1 too low 11 
Simple Custom Post Order 300K+ · 4.8★ (588)
wp.org #14 ↓4 3 too low 12 
Pods – Custom Content Types and Fields 100K+ · 4.8★ (418)
wp.org #15 ↓2 3 too low 13 
Custom Block Builder – Lazy Blocks 20K+ · 4.9★ (80)
wp.org #12 ↓4 1 too high 14 
Yoast SEO – Advanced SEO with real-time guidance and built-in AI 10M+ · 4.8★ (27821)
wp.org #24 10 too low 15 
Wordfence Security – Firewall, Malware Scan, and Login Security 5M+ · 4.7★ (5039) heavy footprint
wp.org #17 2 too low 16 
Spectra Blocks – AI Website Builder for the Block Editor 60K+ · 4.6★ (53) heavy footprint
wp.org #10 ↓1 6 too high 17 
Custom Permalinks 100K+ · 4.1★ (116)
wp.org #16 1 too high 18 
ECS – Ele Custom Skin for Elementor 100K+ · 4.6★ (117)
wp.org #20 2 too low 19 
Custom Fonts – Host Your Fonts Locally 400K+ · 4.3★ (62)
wp.org #19 ↑2 20 
Secure Custom Fields 100K+ · 4.8★ (69) heavy footprint
wp.org #22 ↓3 2 too low 21 
GutenKit – Page Builder Blocks, Patterns, and Templates for Gutenberg Block Editor 80K+ · 4.5★ (48) heavy footprint
wp.org #21 ↓3 22 
Superb Addons: Blocks, Patterns, Pre-built Pages, Sliders, Popups, Free Forms, Animations & More 80K+ · 4.9★ (23) thin reviews
wp.org #23 1 too low 23 VK Blocks 100K+ · 4.8★ (6) host-installed base thin reviews
wp.org #13 ↓1 10 too high 24 
Qi Blocks 60K+ · 5.0★ (5) thin reviews
wp.org #18 ↑2 6 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.