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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “gallery markers”

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 markers”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 8 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

Advanced Gallery & Repeater Fields for ACF shows at wp.org #7 but places #22 on merit, a gap of 15 places. Its 600+ 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

Unlimited Elements for Elementor places #8 on merit, 4.8★ from 525 reviews, but shows at wp.org #13. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 SimpLy Gallery 40K+ · 4.8★ (118) wp.org #1 2 Meow Gallery 10K+ · 4.9★ (203) wp.org #2 3 All-in-One Video Gallery – Video Player & Galleries for YouTube, Vimeo & Self-Hosted Videos 20K+ · 4.8★ (136) wp.org #3 4 Quiz Maker by AYS 20K+ · 4.9★ (601) wp.org #6 2 too low 5 Open User Map – Interactive Leaflet Maps 10K+ · 5.0★ (70) wp.org #5 6 picu – Online Photo Proofing Gallery 2K+ · 4.7★ (55) wp.org #4 2 too high 7 Premium Addons for Elementor – AI-Ready Elementor Addons, Widgets & Templates 600K+ · 4.9★ (1680) wp.org #9 2 too low 8 Unlimited Elements for Elementor 300K+ · 4.8★ (525) wp.org #13 5 too low 9 Otter Blocks – Gutenberg Blocks, Page Builder for Gutenberg Editor & FSE 300K+ · 4.7★ (251) wp.org #14 5 too low 10 Getwid – Gutenberg Blocks 50K+ · 4.7★ (115) wp.org #15 5 too low 11 Agile Store Locator 10K+ · 4.9★ (59) wp.org #11 12 WP Maps – Google Maps, OpenStreetMap, Mapbox, Store Locator with Search, Filters & Listings 60K+ · 4.3★ (122) wp.org #8 4 too high 13 Gutenberg Essential Blocks – Page Builder for Gutenberg Blocks & Patterns 100K+ · 4.9★ (216) wp.org #18 5 too low 14 ShopLentor – All-in-One WooCommerce Growth & Store Enhancement Plugin 80K+ · 4.5★ (278) wp.org #23 9 too low 15 MapSVG – Vector maps, Image maps, Google Maps 1K+ · 4.5★ (31) wp.org #12 3 too high 16 Mapster WP Maps 3K+ · 4.9★ (54) wp.org #17 1 too low 17 iPanorama 360 – Advanced Virtual Tour Builder 4K+ · 4.5★ (31) wp.org #16 1 too high 18 Advanced Views – Display Framework – Gutenberg/Elementor/Shortcode 2K+ · 4.8★ (36) wp.org #24 6 too low 19 EventPrime – Events Calendar, Bookings, Tickets & AI 7K+ · 4.4★ (85) wp.org #22 3 too low 20 Sina Extension for Elementor 40K+ · 4.9★ (35) wp.org #19 1 too high 21 VenoMaps – OpenStreetMap & Privacy-Friendly Geo Maps 400+ · 4.2★ (5) wp.org #20 1 too high 22 Advanced Gallery & Repeater Fields for ACF 600+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #7 15 too high 23 Customer Cloud Gallery – Google Drive & Dropbox Image Gallery 70+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #10 13 too high 24 FooGallery Migrate 1K+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #21 3 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.