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← Rankings

wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “dropdown filter”

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 “dropdown filter”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 11 of the top 20. 4 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 Filter Search shows at wp.org #12 but places #23 on merit, a gap of 11 places. Its 6K+ 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

Ajax Search Lite – Live Search & Filter places #9 on merit, 4.8★ from 266 reviews, but shows at wp.org #21. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Filter Everything — WordPress & WooCommerce Filters 50K+ · 4.6★ (154) wp.org #1 2 Category AJAX Filter – Posts, Custom Post Types & Product Filter 6K+ · 4.9★ (158) wp.org #3 1 too low 3 YMC Filter 4K+ · 4.8★ (34) wp.org #2 1 too high 4 Product Filter for WooCommerce by WBW 50K+ · 4.8★ (325) wp.org #4 5 Search & Filter 40K+ · 4.5★ (175) wp.org #5 6 Portfolio Filter Gallery – Photo Gallery 20K+ · 4.8★ (348) wp.org #7 1 too low 7 Blog Filter – Post Grid Filter by Category or Tag 7K+ · 4.9★ (81) wp.org #6 1 too high 8 Country State City Dropdown CF7 5K+ · 4.9★ (30) wp.org #8 9 Ajax Search Lite – Live Search & Filter 70K+ · 4.8★ (266) wp.org #21 12 too low 10 D Dropdown Multisite Selector 900+ · 5.0★ (19) wp.org #10 11 Nested Pages 90K+ · 4.7★ (126) wp.org #20 ↓1 9 too low 12 Advanced AJAX Product Filters 50K+ · 4.7★ (387) wp.org #17 ↓4 5 too low 13 Content Views – Post Grid & Filter (Shortcode, Blocks, Elementor Widgets) 100K+ · 4.8★ (333) wp.org #24 ↓6 11 too low 14 Beautiful taxonomy filters 2K+ · 4.9★ (68) wp.org #19 ↑2 5 too low 15 Better Post & Filter Widgets for Elementor 4K+ · 5.0★ (18) wp.org #9 6 too high 16 Variation Swatches for WooCommerce 300K+ · 4.8★ (926) wp.org #23 7 too low 17 Filter Orders by Product for WooCommerce 4K+ · 4.7★ (15) wp.org #11 6 too high 18 WCAPF – Ajax Product Filter for WooCommerce 8K+ · 4.3★ (44) wp.org #14 ↑2 4 too high 19 Loop Grid Extender for Elementor – ACF Repeater & Smart Filters 1K+ · 5.0★ (9) wp.org #13 ↑2 6 too high 20 YITH WooCommerce Ajax Product Filter 70K+ · 3.5★ (98) wp.org #22 2 too low 21 T Taxonomy Dropdown Widget 1K+ · 4.7★ (9) wp.org #16 ↓2 5 too high 22 Premmerce Product Filter for WooCommerce 2K+ · 3.4★ (22) wp.org #18 ↑2 4 too high 23 VK Filter Search 6K+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #12 11 too high 24 Category Filter Block 100+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #15 ↑2 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.