wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “disable tooltips”
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 “disable tooltips”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 11 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
Glossary Tooltip – Highlight Terms & Show Tooltips shows at wp.org #8 but places #23 on merit, a gap of 15 places. Its 100+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 2 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
Buried gem
Premium Addons for Elementor – AI-Ready Elementor Addons, Widgets & Templates places #6 on merit, 4.9★ from 1680 reviews, but shows at wp.org #14. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.
Disable Admin Notices – Hide Dashboard Notifications 100K+ · 4.7★ (367)
wp.org #1 2 
Essential Addons for Elementor – Popular Elementor Templates & Widgets 1M+ · 4.9★ (4132) not PHP-current
wp.org #3 1 too low 3 T Tooltips for WordPress 5K+ · 3.8★ (75)
wp.org #2 1 too high 4 
Really Simple Security – Simple and Performant Security (formerly Really Simple SSL) 3M+ · 4.9★ (8869)
wp.org #6 2 too low 5 
Variation Swatches for WooCommerce 300K+ · 4.8★ (926) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #7 2 too low 6 Premium Addons for Elementor – AI-Ready Elementor Addons, Widgets & Templates 600K+ · 4.9★ (1680)
wp.org #14 8 too low 7 
All-In-One Security (AIOS) – Security and Firewall 1M+ · 4.7★ (1720)
wp.org #12 5 too low 8 
Hide Tooltips on Hover – Clean Up Title Attributes Without Losing Accessibility 4K+ · 5.0★ (10) thin reviews
wp.org #5 3 too high 9 
Variation Swatches for WooCommerce – Color, Image & Size Swatches 200K+ · 4.6★ (51)
wp.org #10 1 too low 10 
Swatchly – Product Variation Swatches for WooCommerce 5K+ · 4.5★ (29)
wp.org #9 1 too high 11 
Glossary 2K+ · 4.7★ (84)
wp.org #18 7 too low 12 
Variation Swatches for WooCommerce 8K+ · 4.9★ (86) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #13 1 too low 13 
Variation Swatches for WooCommerce 9K+ · 4.7★ (55)
wp.org #17 4 too low 14 
Logo Slider – Logo Showcase, Logo Carousel, Logo Gallery and Client Logo Presentation 30K+ · 4.7★ (252) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #19 5 too low 15 
Easy Footnotes 8K+ · 4.8★ (33)
wp.org #21 6 too low 16 
WP Hide & Security Enhancer 50K+ · 4.3★ (275) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #24 8 too low 17 
Magic Tooltips For Contact Form 7 600+ · 4.7★ (3) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews
wp.org #4 13 too high 18 
Choosly – Product Variations Swatches for WooCommerce 10K+ · 4.7★ (76) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #22 4 too low 19 
Variation Swatches for WooCommerce 50K+ · 3.7★ (59)
wp.org #23 4 too low 20 
Teydea Login Customizer – Custom Login Page, Branding & Styling 10K+ · 4.8★ (14) thin reviews
wp.org #20 21 
Logo Showcase – Logo Slider, Carousel & Sponsors Gallery 900+ · 4.2★ (10) not PHP-current thin reviews
wp.org #11 10 too high 22 
WCBoost – Variation Swatches 40K+ · 4.8★ (5) thin reviews
wp.org #16 6 too high 23 Glossary Tooltip – Highlight Terms & Show Tooltips 100+ · 5.0★ (2) thin reviews
wp.org #8 15 too high 24 
Reference Manager for WordPress with Footnotes, Citations, Bibliographies, Tooltips and Glossary 60+ · 5.0★ (2) thin reviews
wp.org #15 9 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.