wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “custom top bar”
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 top bar”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 10 of the top 20. 1 plugin is 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
Top Bar Links, add custom links to the admin top bar shows at wp.org #9 but places #21 on merit, a gap of 12 places. Its 100+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 4 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
Buried gem
Admin and Site Enhancements (ASE) places #12 on merit, 5.0★ from 423 reviews, but shows at wp.org #20. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.
WebberZone Top 10 — Popular Posts 10K+ · 4.6★ (102)
wp.org #1 ↑1 2 
Custom Permalinks 100K+ · 4.1★ (116)
wp.org #2 ↓1 3 
WPFront Notification Bar 40K+ · 4.5★ (131)
wp.org #4 1 too low 4 
My Sticky Bar – Floating Notification Bar & Sticky Header (formerly myStickymenu) 100K+ · 4.9★ (1199)
wp.org #11 ↑1 7 too low 5 
Elementor Website Builder – more than just a page builder 10M+ · 4.5★ (7323) not PHP-currentheavy footprint
wp.org #7 ↑1 2 too low 6 
Top Bar 10K+ · 4.0★ (43) not PHP-current
wp.org #3 3 too high 7 
Smooth Back To Top Button 40K+ · 4.9★ (31)
wp.org #5 2 too high 8 
WPCode – Insert Headers and Footers + Custom Code Snippets – WordPress Code Manager 3M+ · 4.9★ (1915)
wp.org #15 ↓4 7 too low 9 
Admin Bar Editor – Toolbar Customization with User Role based access & Custom menus 3K+ · 4.4★ (24) thin reviews
wp.org #6 3 too high 10 
Cookie Bar 10K+ · 4.9★ (23) thin reviews
wp.org #8 ↓1 2 too high 11 
Essential Addons for Elementor – Popular Elementor Templates & Widgets 1M+ · 4.9★ (4132) not PHP-current
wp.org #16 ↓1 5 too low 12 Admin and Site Enhancements (ASE) 200K+ · 5.0★ (423)
wp.org #20 ↑4 8 too low 13 
Simple Banner – Easily add multiple Banners/Bars/Notifications/Announcements to the top or bottom of your website 50K+ · 4.8★ (45)
wp.org #14 ↑6 1 too low 14 
Mobile Contact Bar 9K+ · 4.6★ (30)
wp.org #12 ↑1 2 too high 15 
EU Cookies Bar for WordPress 9K+ · 4.8★ (26)
wp.org #13 ↑1 2 too high 16 
Easy Notification Bar 9K+ · 4.6★ (16) thin reviews
wp.org #10 ↓1 6 too high 17 
Notibar – Notification Bar for WordPress 8K+ · 4.8★ (71)
wp.org #23 6 too low 18 
Progress Bar 1K+ · 5.0★ (24) thin reviews
wp.org #22 4 too low 19 
HashBar – Announcement, Notification Bar & Popup Campaign 9K+ · 4.2★ (38)
wp.org #21 ↓2 2 too low 20 
MB Custom Post Types & Custom Taxonomies 10K+ · 4.7★ (13) thin reviews
wp.org #18 ↓1 2 too high 21 Top Bar Links, add custom links to the admin top bar 100+ · 5.0★ (4) thin reviews
wp.org #9 ↑1 12 too high 22 
Custom Adobe Fonts (Typekit) 60K+ · 4.4★ (8) thin reviews
wp.org #19 ↓1 3 too high 23 
MakeITeasy Back To Top 2K+ · 5.0★ (2) thin reviews
wp.org #17 ↓1 6 too high 24 
Custom top bar 50+ · 3.0★ (2) thin reviews
wp.org #24 ↓3 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.