wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “embedded css”
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 “embedded css”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 10 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 the install base is organic or host-pushed, and its risk of being pulled.
Ranked above its merit
Embedded Posts shows at wp.org #4 but places #23 on merit, a gap of 19 places. Its 50+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 1 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
Buried gem
WPForms – AI Form Builder for WordPress – Contact Forms, Payment Forms, Survey Form, Quiz & More places #12 on merit, 4.8★ from 14387 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.
CSS & JavaScript Toolbox 10K+ · 4.8★ (84)
wp.org #1 2 
W3 Total Cache 900K+ · 4.4★ (5420)
wp.org #2 3 
Complianz GDPR/CCPA Cookie Consent Banner 1M+ · 4.7★ (1667)
wp.org #3 4 
Admin and Site Enhancements (ASE) 200K+ · 5.0★ (423)
wp.org #6 2 too low 5 
Use Any Font | Custom Font Uploader 200K+ · 4.7★ (1148)
wp.org #8 3 too low 6 
PDF Invoices & Packing Slips for WooCommerce 300K+ · 5.0★ (1865)
wp.org #10 4 too low 7 
EmbedPress 100K+ · 4.8★ (307)
wp.org #9 2 too low 8 
Post/Page Specific Custom Code 6K+ · 4.6★ (42)
wp.org #5 3 too high 9 
10Web Booster – Website speed optimization, Cache & Page Speed optimizer 60K+ · 4.6★ (405)
wp.org #11 2 too low 10 
Embed Plus for YouTube Gallery, Livestream and Lazy Loading with Facades 100K+ · 4.6★ (572)
wp.org #12 2 too low 11 
DearFlip – PDF Flipbook, 3D Flipbook, PDF embed, PDF viewer 200K+ · 4.9★ (194)
wp.org #14 3 too low 12 WPForms – AI Form Builder for WordPress – Contact Forms, Payment Forms, Survey Form, Quiz & More 5M+ · 4.8★ (14387)
wp.org #21 9 too low 13 
Robo Gallery – Photo & Image Slider 40K+ · 4.3★ (406)
wp.org #15 2 too low 14 
Hustle – Email Marketing, Lead Generation, Optins, Popups 80K+ · 4.4★ (859)
wp.org #20 6 too low 15 
Easy Optimizer – PageSpeed, Cache & Core Web Vitals (Unused CSS, Delay JS, Lazy Load) 1K+ · 4.6★ (18) thin reviews
wp.org #7 8 too high 16 
Easy Social Feed – All In One Social Feed Plugin for WordPress 30K+ · 4.6★ (502)
wp.org #22 ↑1 6 too low 17 
Disable and Remove Google Fonts | GDPR & DSGVO friendly 100K+ · 4.5★ (46)
wp.org #13 4 too high 18 
SVG Support 1M+ · 4.8★ (356)
wp.org #19 1 too low 19 
Embed Privacy 10K+ · 4.9★ (26)
wp.org #17 2 too high 20 
Redux Framework 900K+ · 4.4★ (273)
wp.org #23 ↓1 3 too low 21 I iframe 60K+ · 4.4★ (56)
wp.org #24 3 too low 22 
GDPRess | Eliminate external requests to increase GDPR compliance 1K+ · 5.0★ (8) thin reviews
wp.org #18 4 too high 23 Embedded Posts 50+ · 5.0★ (1) thin reviews
wp.org #4 19 too high 24 
ANON::form embedded secure form 10+ · 5.0★ (1) thin reviews
wp.org #16 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.