wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “featured post widget”
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 “featured post widget”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 9 of the top 20. 2 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
Better Post & Filter Widgets for Elementor shows at wp.org #14 but places #21 on merit, a gap of 7 places. Its 4K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 18 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
Buried gem
Widget Options – Advanced Conditional Visibility for Gutenberg Blocks & Classic Widgets places #10 on merit, 4.9★ from 1516 reviews, but shows at wp.org #18. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.
Essential Addons for Elementor – Popular Elementor Templates & Widgets 1M+ · 4.9★ (4132) not PHP-current
wp.org #1 ↑1 2 
Recent Posts Widget With Thumbnails 100K+ · 4.8★ (215)
wp.org #2 ↑1 3 
Elementor Website Builder – more than just a page builder 10M+ · 4.5★ (7323) not PHP-currentheavy footprint
wp.org #3 ↑1 4 
Featured Image from URL (FIFU) 60K+ · 4.6★ (264)
wp.org #4 ↓3 5 
Simple Custom Post Order 300K+ · 4.8★ (587)
wp.org #6 1 too low 6 
ElementsKit Elementor Addons – Advanced Widgets & Templates Addons for Elementor 1M+ · 4.9★ (2051)
wp.org #7 1 too low 7 
Ultimate Post Kit – Elementor Post Grid, Post Carousel, Post Slider & Blog Layout Widgets 30K+ · 4.8★ (58)
wp.org #5 2 too high 8 
Content Blocks (Custom Post Widget) 10K+ · 4.9★ (80)
wp.org #9 1 too low 9 
The Post Grid – Shortcode, Gutenberg Blocks and Elementor Addon for Post Grid 100K+ · 4.8★ (265)
wp.org #12 3 too low 10 Widget Options – Advanced Conditional Visibility for Gutenberg Blocks & Classic Widgets 100K+ · 4.9★ (1516)
wp.org #18 8 too low 11 
Post Duplicator 200K+ · 4.8★ (80)
wp.org #10 1 too high 12 
Black Studio TinyMCE Widget 200K+ · 4.8★ (191)
wp.org #13 1 too low 13 N NS Featured Posts 4K+ · 4.8★ (29)
wp.org #8 5 too high 14 
Rate My Post – Star Rating Plugin by FeedbackWP 20K+ · 4.7★ (159) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #11 3 too high 15 
Smart Post – Post Grid, Post Carousel, Post Slider Gutenberg Blocks for Blog & News 20K+ · 4.7★ (210) heavy footprint
wp.org #20 5 too low 16 
WP Popular Posts 100K+ · 4.5★ (249)
wp.org #23 ↓8 7 too low 17 
Content Views – Post Grid & Filter (Shortcode, Blocks, Elementor Widgets) 100K+ · 4.8★ (333) heavy footprint
wp.org #24 ↓1 7 too low 18 
Post Slider and Post Carousel with Post Vertical Scrolling Widget – A Responsive Post Slider 10K+ · 4.7★ (31)
wp.org #15 ↑2 3 too high 19 
Conditionally display featured image on singular posts and pages 30K+ · 4.8★ (38)
wp.org #19 20 
Really Simple Featured Video for Posts, Pages & WooCommerce Products 4K+ · 4.0★ (34)
wp.org #16 ↓2 4 too high 21 Better Post & Filter Widgets for Elementor 4K+ · 5.0★ (18) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews
wp.org #14 ↑2 7 too high 22 C Custom Post Type Widgets 10K+ · 4.8★ (14) thin reviews
wp.org #22 23 
GR Widget – Google Reviews Widget 900+ · 5.0★ (10) thin reviews
wp.org #21 2 too high 24 
Duplicate Post – duplicate pages, copy content, clone posts 5K+ · 4.7★ (7) thin reviews
wp.org #17 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.