wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “elegant themes”
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 “elegant themes”, we and wp.org disagree on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 15 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
Unlimited Product Labels and Product Badges for WooCommerce – Elegant Labels shows at wp.org #4 but places #21 on merit, a gap of 17 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
User Profile Builder – Beautiful User Registration Forms, User Profiles & User Role Editor places #4 on merit, 4.7★ from 738 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.
Simple Divi Shortcode 10K+ · 5.0★ (23) thin reviews
wp.org #2 1 too low 2 
Safelayout Elegant Icons – WordPress icons 700+ · 5.0★ (5) thin reviews
wp.org #1 1 too high 3 
Business Directory Plugin – Easy Listing & Member Directories for WordPress 10K+ · 4.6★ (504)
wp.org #8 ↑2 5 too low 4 User Profile Builder – Beautiful User Registration Forms, User Profiles & User Role Editor 40K+ · 4.7★ (738)
wp.org #14 ↑3 10 too low 5 
SportsPress – Sports Club & League Manager 10K+ · 4.7★ (369) not PHP-current
wp.org #11 ↓3 6 too low 6 
Spotlight Social Photo Feed 60K+ · 4.7★ (171)
wp.org #13 ↑1 7 too low 7 
Ultimate Addons for Elementor – Widgets, Templates, WooCommerce & Header Footer Builder 2M+ · 4.9★ (2528)
wp.org #17 ↑5 10 too low 8 
Surbma | Divi & Gravity Forms 9K+ · 5.0★ (21) thin reviews
wp.org #7 ↓1 1 too high 9 
Use Any Font | Custom Font Uploader 200K+ · 4.7★ (1148)
wp.org #19 ↑4 10 too low 10 
Create 6K+ · 4.3★ (25)
wp.org #6 ↑13 4 too high 11 
Carousel Block – Showcase Images in Elegant Sliding Displays 7K+ · 5.0★ (6) not PHP-current thin reviews
wp.org #3 8 too high 12 
Advanced File Manager – Ultimate File Manager for WordPress And Document Library Solution 100K+ · 4.8★ (441)
wp.org #21 ↓5 9 too low 13 
Timeline Block – tell your story with elegant timelines 3K+ · 5.0★ (6) thin reviews
wp.org #5 8 too high 14 
Multiple Themes 10K+ · 4.7★ (50)
wp.org #15 ↓3 1 too low 15 
bbPress 100K+ · 3.9★ (343)
wp.org #22 ↑2 7 too low 16 
AF Companion – Starter Sites, Speed Booster & Growth Suite for Professional Publishing 10K+ · 4.9★ (34) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #12 ↓1 4 too high 17 
Catch Gallery 10K+ · 4.0★ (16) thin reviews
wp.org #10 ↓1 7 too high 18 
CAPTCHA 4WP – Antispam CAPTCHA solution for WordPress 100K+ · 3.2★ (269)
wp.org #20 2 too low 19 
Smooth Back To Top Button 40K+ · 4.9★ (31)
wp.org #24 5 too low 20 
Custom Fonts – Host Your Fonts Locally 400K+ · 4.3★ (62)
wp.org #23 ↓2 3 too low 21 Unlimited Product Labels and Product Badges for WooCommerce – Elegant Labels 100+ · 5.0★ (2) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews
wp.org #4 17 too high 22 
Catch Breadcrumb 2K+ · 5.0★ (5) thin reviews
wp.org #16 ↓1 6 too high 23 
Surbma | Divi Extras 1K+ · 4.0★ (4) thin reviews
wp.org #9 ↓2 14 too high 24 
Premium Portfolio Features for Phlox theme 30K+ · 4.3★ (7) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews
wp.org #18 ↓5 6 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.