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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “excerpt editor”

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 “excerpt editor”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 7 of the top 20. 1 plugin is 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

Mandatory Excerpts for WordPress shows at wp.org #7 but places #22 on merit, a gap of 15 places. Its 100+ 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

Ad Inserter – Ad Manager & AdSense Ads places #5 on merit, 4.9★ from 2433 reviews, but shows at wp.org #11. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Members – Membership & User Role Editor Plugin 300K+ · 4.9★ (1281) wp.org #1 2 Elementor Website Builder – more than just a page builder 10M+ · 4.5★ (7323) wp.org #2 ↓1 3 Bulk Edit Posts and Products in Spreadsheet 7K+ · 4.8★ (217) wp.org #4 ↓1 1 too low 4 WPIDE – File Manager & Code Editor 40K+ · 4.8★ (306) wp.org #5 1 too low 5 Ad Inserter – Ad Manager & AdSense Ads 300K+ · 4.9★ (2433) wp.org #11 ↑1 6 too low 6 Jetpack – AI Agents & MCP, Security, Backup & Analytics 3M+ · 3.7★ (2408) wp.org #6 ↑10 7 Ultimate Blocks – 25+ Gutenberg Blocks for Block Editor 50K+ · 4.9★ (729) wp.org #8 ↓2 1 too low 8 Slider, Gallery, and Carousel by MetaSlider – Image Slider, Video Slider 500K+ · 4.6★ (742) wp.org #10 ↓5 2 too low 9 Block Visibility — Conditional Visibility Control for the Block Editor 40K+ · 4.9★ (108) wp.org #9 ↓2 10 Better Block Editor (BBE) 6K+ · 5.0★ (11) wp.org #3 ↓1 7 too high 11 Twentig Supercharged Block Editor – Blocks, Patterns, Starter Sites, Portfolio 20K+ · 4.9★ (171) wp.org #12 ↓8 1 too low 12 Admin and Site Enhancements (ASE) 200K+ · 5.0★ (423) wp.org #15 ↓5 3 too low 13 Recent Posts Widget With Thumbnails 100K+ · 4.8★ (215) wp.org #18 ↓3 5 too low 14 Gutentor – Gutenberg Blocks – Page Builder for Gutenberg Editor 30K+ · 4.6★ (90) wp.org #14 ↓3 15 Royal Addons for Elementor – Addons and Templates Kit for Elementor 600K+ · 4.8★ (612) wp.org #23 ↓2 8 too low 16 GenerateBlocks 200K+ · 4.9★ (122) wp.org #19 ↓2 3 too low 17 Bulk Edit Products for WooCommerce – WP Sheet Editor 10K+ · 4.9★ (228) wp.org #17 ↓4 18 Simple Custom CSS and JS 600K+ · 4.4★ (104) wp.org #16 ↑2 2 too high 19 Category Posts Block 40K+ · 4.5★ (79) wp.org #21 ↓1 2 too low 20 Responsive Blocks – Page Builder for Blocks & Patterns 3K+ · 4.8★ (17) wp.org #20 ↓1 21 AI 60K+ · 4.2★ (10) wp.org #22 1 too low 22 Mandatory Excerpts for WordPress 100+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #7 ↑1 15 too high 23 MRW Simplified Editor 100+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #24 ↓1 1 too low 24 AI + Block Editor 100+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #13 ↓4 11 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.