wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “gallery grid”
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 “gallery grid”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 4 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
Grid Gallery – for Photo Gallery, Image Gallery & Portfolio shows at wp.org #16 but places #22 on merit, a gap of 6 places. Its 1K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 8 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
Modula Image Gallery – Photo Grid & Video Gallery 100K+ · 4.7★ (616)
wp.org #1 2 
Photo Gallery, Sliders, Proofing and Themes – NextGEN Gallery 300K+ · 4.3★ (4342) not PHP-currentheavy footprint
wp.org #2 3 
Envira Gallery – Image Photo Gallery, Albums, Video Gallery, Slideshows & More 100K+ · 4.7★ (1596)
wp.org #5 ↓1 2 too low 4 
Robo Gallery – Photo & Image Slider 40K+ · 4.3★ (406)
wp.org #4 ↑17 5 
Responsive Gallery Grid 4K+ · 4.7★ (66)
wp.org #3 2 too high 6 
The Post Grid – Shortcode, Gutenberg Blocks and Elementor Addon for Post Grid 100K+ · 4.8★ (265)
wp.org #6 ↑1 7 
FooGallery Photo Gallery : Image, Video & Masonry Galleries 100K+ · 4.8★ (995) not PHP-current
wp.org #7 ↓1 8 
SimpLy Gallery 40K+ · 4.8★ (118)
wp.org #9 ↓1 1 too low 9 
Justified Gallery 8K+ · 4.9★ (206)
wp.org #11 ↓1 2 too low 10 
Image Photo Gallery Final Tiles Grid 20K+ · 4.7★ (353) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #8 ↓3 2 too high 11 
Gallery PhotoBlocks 3K+ · 5.0★ (76)
wp.org #10 ↓1 1 too high 12 
Portfolio Filter Gallery – Photo Gallery 20K+ · 4.8★ (348)
wp.org #15 ↓1 3 too low 13 
Elementor Website Builder – more than just a page builder 10M+ · 4.5★ (7323) not PHP-currentheavy footprint
wp.org #12 1 too high 14 
Photo Gallery by Supsystic – Image Gallery, Masonry, Albums & Lightbox 20K+ · 4.6★ (498)
wp.org #18 4 too low 15 
Post Grid 30K+ · 4.3★ (163)
wp.org #14 ↓1 1 too high 16 
Essential Addons for Elementor – Popular Elementor Templates & Widgets 1M+ · 4.9★ (4132) not PHP-current
wp.org #17 ↑2 1 too low 17 
Photo Gallery – GT3 Image Gallery & Gutenberg Block Gallery 10K+ · 4.8★ (147) not PHP-current
wp.org #19 ↑1 2 too low 18 
Portfolio Grid – Filterable Gallery, Grid & Slider Showcase 800+ · 4.4★ (33)
wp.org #13 ↓2 5 too high 19 
Document Gallery 8K+ · 4.8★ (112) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #21 2 too low 20 
Variation Images Gallery for WooCommerce 10K+ · 4.7★ (39)
wp.org #24 ↓1 4 too low 21 
Image Gallery 3K+ · 4.4★ (32)
wp.org #20 1 too high 22 Grid Gallery – for Photo Gallery, Image Gallery & Portfolio 1K+ · 5.0★ (8) thin reviews
wp.org #16 ↓1 6 too high 23 
Filter Gallery 3K+ · 4.6★ (22) thin reviews
wp.org #23 ↓1 24 
MetaSlider Gallery – Image Gallery, Lightbox Galleries, Video Galleries 10K+ · 4.4★ (9) thin reviews
wp.org #22 ↓6 2 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.