wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “custom content 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 “custom content widget”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 7 of the top 20. 3 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
List Custom Taxonomy Widget shows at wp.org #10 but places #21 on merit, a gap of 11 places. Its 8K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 4.7★ average from 21 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
Advanced Custom Fields (ACF®) 2M+ · 4.5★ (1440) heavy footprint
wp.org #1 ↑1 2 
Pods – Custom Content Types and Fields 100K+ · 4.8★ (418)
wp.org #2 ↓1 3 
Forminator Forms – Contact Form, Payment Form & Custom Form Builder 600K+ · 4.8★ (2143)
wp.org #4 1 too low 4 
Essential Addons for Elementor – Popular Elementor Templates & Widgets 1M+ · 4.9★ (4132) not PHP-current
wp.org #3 1 too high 5 
ElementsKit Elementor Addons – Advanced Widgets & Templates Addons for Elementor 1M+ · 4.9★ (2051)
wp.org #6 ↑1 1 too low 6 
Elementor Website Builder – more than just a page builder 10M+ · 4.5★ (7323) not PHP-currentheavy footprint
wp.org #5 1 too high 7 
Simple Custom Post Order 300K+ · 4.8★ (587)
wp.org #7 ↓1 8 
Custom Sidebars – Dynamic Sidebar Classic Widget Area Manager 100K+ · 4.7★ (1028)
wp.org #11 ↓2 3 too low 9 
Premium Addons for Elementor – AI-Ready Elementor Addons, Widgets & Templates 600K+ · 4.9★ (1680)
wp.org #12 ↓2 3 too low 10 
Content Blocks (Custom Post Widget) 10K+ · 4.9★ (80)
wp.org #8 2 too high 11 
Content Views – Post Grid & Filter (Shortcode, Blocks, Elementor Widgets) 100K+ · 4.8★ (333) heavy footprint
wp.org #9 2 too high 12 
Custom Twitter Feeds – A Tweets Widget or X Feed Widget 100K+ · 4.8★ (401)
wp.org #14 ↓3 2 too low 13 
Content Control – The Ultimate Content Restriction Solution! Restrict Content, Create Conditional Blocks & More 40K+ · 4.9★ (575)
wp.org #19 6 too low 14 
Widget Options – Advanced Conditional Visibility for Gutenberg Blocks & Classic Widgets 100K+ · 4.9★ (1516)
wp.org #23 ↓2 9 too low 15 
ECS – Ele Custom Skin for Elementor 100K+ · 4.6★ (117)
wp.org #13 ↑5 2 too high 16 
Recent Posts Widget With Thumbnails 100K+ · 4.8★ (215)
wp.org #16 ↓1 17 
Content Aware Sidebars – Fastest Widget Area Plugin 30K+ · 4.9★ (724) not PHP-current
wp.org #17 18 
Table of Contents Plus – Automatic Table of Contents for Posts & Pages 200K+ · 4.5★ (187)
wp.org #15 ↑1 3 too high 19 
WPCode – Insert Headers and Footers + Custom Code Snippets – WordPress Code Manager 3M+ · 4.9★ (1915)
wp.org #21 ↑2 2 too low 20 
Ultimate Addons for Elementor – Widgets, Templates, WooCommerce & Header Footer Builder 2M+ · 4.9★ (2528)
wp.org #22 2 too low 21 List Custom Taxonomy Widget 8K+ · 4.7★ (21) thin reviews
wp.org #10 ↓2 11 too high 22 
Widgets for Social Photo Feed 10K+ · 4.7★ (28)
wp.org #18 ↑4 4 too high 23 C Custom Post Type Widgets 10K+ · 4.8★ (14) thin reviews
wp.org #20 3 too high 24 
Passster – Password Protect Pages and Content 10K+ · 4.2★ (60) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #24 ↓12 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.