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← Rankings

wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “customizations”

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 “customizations”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 14 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 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

Customization for WP SEO shows at wp.org #2 but places #12 on merit, a gap of 10 places. Its 2K+ 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

ElementsKit Elementor Addons – Advanced Widgets & Templates Addons for Elementor places #11 on merit, 4.9★ from 2051 reviews, but shows at wp.org #18. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 The Events Calendar 600K+ · 4.2★ (2461) wp.org #1 2 Elementor Website Builder – more than just a page builder 10M+ · 4.5★ (7323) wp.org #3 ↑2 1 too low 3 Premium Addons for Elementor – AI-Ready Elementor Addons, Widgets & Templates 600K+ · 4.9★ (1680) wp.org #6 ↑1 3 too low 4 PDF Invoices & Packing Slips for WooCommerce 300K+ · 5.0★ (1865) wp.org #5 ↑1 1 too low 5 Photo Gallery, Sliders, Proofing and Themes – NextGEN Gallery 300K+ · 4.3★ (4342) wp.org #7 ↑1 2 too low 6 Smash Balloon Social Photo Feed – Easy Social Feeds Plugin 1M+ · 4.9★ (4358) wp.org #11 ↓1 5 too low 7 Media Library Assistant 70K+ · 4.8★ (202) wp.org #9 ↑8 2 too low 8 Smart Slider 3 800K+ · 4.9★ (1125) wp.org #12 ↑4 4 too low 9 CookieYes – Cookie Banner for Cookie Consent (Easy to setup GDPR/CCPA Compliant Cookie Notice) 1M+ · 4.8★ (3236) wp.org #13 ↑1 4 too low 10 SiteOrigin CSS 100K+ · 4.9★ (153) wp.org #14 ↓1 4 too low 11 ElementsKit Elementor Addons – Advanced Widgets & Templates Addons for Elementor 1M+ · 4.9★ (2051) wp.org #18 7 too low 12 Customization for WP SEO 2K+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #2 10 too high 13 Add To Cart Button Customizations 400+ · 5.0★ (6) wp.org #4 ↓1 9 too high 14 Admin Bar Editor – Toolbar Customization with User Role based access & Custom menus 3K+ · 4.4★ (24) wp.org #8 ↑1 6 too high 15 Blocksy Companion 300K+ · 4.7★ (93) wp.org #16 ↑2 1 too low 16 Image Watermark 40K+ · 4.2★ (298) wp.org #20 ↑2 4 too low 17 Gutenberg 400K+ · 2.1★ (3888) wp.org #10 ↑1 7 too high 18 YMC Filter 4K+ · 4.8★ (34) wp.org #15 ↓3 3 too high 19 Kirki – Freeform Page Builder, Website Builder & Customizer 500K+ · 4.5★ (81) wp.org #21 2 too low 20 Breadcrumb NavXT 800K+ · 4.6★ (132) wp.org #23 ↑1 3 too low 21 We’re Open! 5K+ · 5.0★ (45) wp.org #24 3 too low 22 Event Tickets and Registration 90K+ · 3.5★ (236) wp.org #22 ↓3 23 All In One Login 60K+ · 3.6★ (35) wp.org #19 ↓15 4 too high 24 HookMeUp for WooCommerce 10K+ · 4.9★ (7) wp.org #17 ↓2 7 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.