wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “facebook sharing”
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 “facebook sharing”, 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
Ocean Product Sharing shows at wp.org #3 but places #21 on merit, a gap of 18 places. Its 20K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 0.0★ average from 0 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
Buried gem
Social Media Share Buttons & Social Sharing Icons places #3 on merit, 4.8★ from 5333 reviews, but shows at wp.org #10. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.
Scriptless Social Sharing 10K+ · 5.0★ (70)
wp.org #1 2 
Smash Balloon Social Post Feed – Simple Social Feeds for WordPress 100K+ · 4.7★ (1511)
wp.org #4 2 too low 3 Social Media Share Buttons & Social Sharing Icons 100K+ · 4.8★ (5333)
wp.org #10 ↓2 7 too low 4 
Jetpack – AI Agents & MCP, Security, Backup & Analytics 3M+ · 3.7★ (2408)
wp.org #5 ↑4 1 too low 5 
Ocean Social Sharing 60K+ · 4.5★ (11) thin reviews
wp.org #2 3 too high 6 
Rank Math SEO – AI SEO Tools to Dominate SEO Rankings 4M+ · 4.8★ (7520)
wp.org #12 ↓2 6 too low 7 
Social Sharing (by Danny) 2K+ · 5.0★ (68)
wp.org #7 ↓1 8 
Social Preview and Open Graph Tags 50K+ · 4.6★ (122)
wp.org #8 ↓1 9 
Yoast SEO – Advanced SEO with real-time guidance and built-in AI 10M+ · 4.8★ (27821)
wp.org #15 ↓1 6 too low 10 
Complianz GDPR/CCPA Cookie Consent Banner 1M+ · 4.7★ (1668)
wp.org #14 ↑3 4 too low 11 
Social Sharing Block 7K+ · 5.0★ (18) thin reviews
wp.org #6 ↓1 5 too high 12 
Buttonizer – Social Media Share Buttons, Social Icons, & Social Feeds 40K+ · 4.8★ (396) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #11 ↑1 1 too high 13 
Hubbub Lite – Fast, free social sharing and follow buttons 30K+ · 4.7★ (173)
wp.org #17 ↓1 4 too low 14 
Robo Gallery – Photo & Image Slider 40K+ · 4.3★ (406)
wp.org #19 5 too low 15 
ElementsKit Elementor Addons – Advanced Widgets & Templates Addons for Elementor 1M+ · 4.9★ (2051)
wp.org #22 7 too low 16 
Simple Social Media Share Buttons – Social Sharing for Everyone 20K+ · 4.8★ (194) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #13 3 too high 17 
Social Login, Social Sharing by miniOrange 10K+ · 4.6★ (356) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #18 1 too low 18 
AddToAny Share Buttons 300K+ · 4.7★ (1114) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #21 3 too low 19 
Super Web Share – Native Social Sharing Button 2K+ · 4.9★ (29)
wp.org #20 1 too low 20 
Social LikeBox & Feed 10K+ · 3.3★ (47)
wp.org #16 ↓1 4 too high 21 Ocean Product Sharing 20K+ · 0.0★ (0) thin reviewslow rating, top placement
wp.org #3 18 too high 22 
Sharing Image 600+ · 4.7★ (3) thin reviews
wp.org #9 ↑2 13 too high 23 
Social Sharing Plugin – Kiwi 4K+ · 4.1★ (18) thin reviews
wp.org #24 1 too low 24 
Social Rocket – Social Sharing Plugin 1K+ · 5.0★ (12) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews
wp.org #23 1 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.