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

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 “easing”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 12 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

Video Gallery shows at wp.org #8 but places #20 on merit, a gap of 12 places. Its 600+ 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

Slideshow Gallery LITE places #5 on merit, 4.6★ from 743 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.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Page scroll to id 100K+ · 4.9★ (225) wp.org #1 2 AnimateGL – WebGL & CSS Scroll Animations and Hover Effects for Gutenberg and Elementor 2K+ · 5.0★ (22) wp.org #2 ↑1 3 WP Image Zoom 10K+ · 4.3★ (119) wp.org #6 3 too low 4 Flip Cards Module For Divi 3K+ · 4.9★ (32) wp.org #5 1 too low 5 Slideshow Gallery LITE 5K+ · 4.6★ (743) wp.org #14 9 too low 6 Better Block Editor (BBE) 6K+ · 5.0★ (11) wp.org #4 2 too high 7 Text Unfold For Elementor 3K+ · 4.6★ (7) wp.org #3 ↓1 4 too high 8 jQuery Smooth Scroll 10K+ · 4.5★ (47) wp.org #9 1 too low 9 Sticky Header Effects for Elementor 300K+ · 4.5★ (69) wp.org #12 ↓1 3 too low 10 Brands for WooCommerce 5K+ · 4.8★ (76) wp.org #10 ↓3 11 Block Animations, Motion & Scroll Effects – Ghost Kit 6K+ · 4.6★ (46) wp.org #15 ↑2 4 too low 12 Vertical Image Slider – Responsive Thumbnail Slider with Lightbox 1K+ · 4.9★ (7) wp.org #7 ↑1 5 too high 13 Colibri Page Builder 80K+ · 4.4★ (80) wp.org #22 ↓4 9 too low 14 Thumbnail Slider With Lightbox 700+ · 3.8★ (11) wp.org #11 ↑1 3 too high 15 Responsive Thumbnail Slider 1K+ · 4.4★ (23) wp.org #20 ↑1 5 too low 16 Button Generator – Easily Create Custom Buttons with Icons and Analytics 4K+ · 4.3★ (18) wp.org #17 ↓1 1 too low 17 Video Gallery – YouTube, Vimeo & Video Slider with Lightbox 1K+ · 4.4★ (7) wp.org #13 4 too high 18 Simple Scroll To Top WP 1K+ · 5.0★ (9) wp.org #21 ↑1 3 too low 19 Image Slider 4K+ · 3.4★ (31) wp.org #18 ↑1 1 too high 20 Video Gallery 600+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #8 ↑2 12 too high 21 R RA Widgets Animate 200+ · 4.8★ (4) wp.org #23 2 too low 22 Combine Social Photos | Still BE 700+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #19 ↑1 3 too high 23 Setmore 4K+ · 2.5★ (4) wp.org #24 1 too low 24 Click to top 2K+ · 2.0★ (2) wp.org #16 ↓1 8 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.