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

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 “fancybox”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 13 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

WP fancybox shows at wp.org #3 but places #12 on merit, a gap of 9 places. Its 1K+ 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

Gallery by Visual Portfolio places #7 on merit, 4.8★ from 338 reviews, but shows at wp.org #15. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 FancyBox for WordPress 30K+ · 4.6★ (92) wp.org #1 2 Firelight Lightbox 200K+ · 4.8★ (360) wp.org #2 3 Responsive Lightbox & Gallery 100K+ · 4.9★ (2002) wp.org #7 4 too low 4 WP Editor 20K+ · 4.5★ (95) wp.org #4 5 Photonic Gallery & Lightbox for Flickr, SmugMug & Others 10K+ · 4.8★ (193) wp.org #9 ↑4 4 too low 6 Simple Social Media Share Buttons – Social Sharing for Everyone 20K+ · 4.8★ (194) wp.org #6 7 Gallery by Visual Portfolio 60K+ · 4.8★ (338) wp.org #15 8 too low 8 WPC Smart Quick View for WooCommerce 90K+ · 4.9★ (31) wp.org #5 3 too high 9 I Insert Pages 30K+ · 4.8★ (71) wp.org #12 ↓1 3 too low 10 ARI Fancy Lightbox – Popup for WordPress 10K+ · 4.7★ (71) wp.org #14 4 too low 11 NGG Smart Image Search 400+ · 4.9★ (13) wp.org #8 3 too high 12 WP fancybox 1K+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #3 9 too high 13 WP ImageViewer 700+ · 4.9★ (10) wp.org #13 ↓1 14 Contact Form to DB by BestWebSoft – Messages Database Plugin For WordPress 1K+ · 4.2★ (12) wp.org #16 2 too low 15 Dynamic Product Gallery for WooCommerce 1K+ · 3.1★ (37) wp.org #21 6 too low 16 All In One Lightbox – show any media in beautiful popups 3K+ · 5.0★ (7) wp.org #20 4 too low 17 Elite Gallery Widget for Elementor 200+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #10 ↓1 7 too high 18 Product Image and Video Gallery Slider for WooCommerce 700+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #11 ↓1 7 too high 19 Geo2 Maps Add-on for NextGEN Gallery 90+ · 3.3★ (12) wp.org #19 20 PrettyPhoto – Simple Lightbox Plugin 2K+ · 2.8★ (15) wp.org #22 2 too low 21 FancyBox for Multimedia Blocks 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #18 ↓1 3 too high 22 My Social Feeds – bring your social content into WordPress 500+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #23 1 too low 23 Gallery for Google Photos – share your albums right on your site 1K+ · 2.7★ (6) wp.org #24 1 too low 24 FV Player 8 1K+ · 4.0★ (2) wp.org #17 ↑1 7 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.