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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “github 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 “github widget”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 6 of the top 20.

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 the install base is organic or host-pushed, and its risk of being pulled.

Ranked above its merit

Genesis Widget Column Classes shows at wp.org #14 but places #22 on merit, a gap of 8 places. Its 5K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 4.5★ average from 8 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Essential Addons for Elementor – Popular Elementor Templates & Widgets 1M+ · 4.9★ (4132) wp.org #1 2 Premium Addons for Elementor – AI-Ready Elementor Addons, Widgets & Templates 600K+ · 4.9★ (1680) wp.org #3 1 too low 3 Widget Context 30K+ · 4.5★ (98) wp.org #2 1 too high 4 Widget Options – Advanced Conditional Visibility for Gutenberg Blocks & Classic Widgets 100K+ · 4.9★ (1516) wp.org #7 ↓1 3 too low 5 Widget Importer & Exporter 200K+ · 4.7★ (117) wp.org #4 1 too high 6 LiteSpeed Cache 7M+ · 4.8★ (2778) wp.org #6 ↑2 7 Black Studio TinyMCE Widget 200K+ · 4.8★ (191) wp.org #5 2 too high 8 SiteOrigin Widgets Bundle 400K+ · 4.9★ (134) wp.org #8 ↑1 9 Image Widget 100K+ · 4.9★ (287) wp.org #11 2 too low 10 Elementor Website Builder – more than just a page builder 10M+ · 4.5★ (7322) wp.org #12 2 too low 11 WPZOOM Connect: Social Icons Widget & Block, Share Buttons & Click to Chat 90K+ · 4.9★ (144) wp.org #13 ↑7 2 too low 12 WPZOOM Social Feed Widget & Block 50K+ · 4.3★ (51) wp.org #9 ↓2 3 too high 13 Content Aware Sidebars – Fastest Widget Area Plugin 30K+ · 4.9★ (724) wp.org #23 10 too low 14 Members – Membership & User Role Editor Plugin 300K+ · 4.9★ (1281) wp.org #24 ↓2 10 too low 15 Widget Disable 10K+ · 4.8★ (24) wp.org #10 5 too high 16 Complianz GDPR/CCPA Cookie Consent Banner 1M+ · 4.7★ (1667) wp.org #22 6 too low 17 Widget Content Blocks 10K+ · 4.8★ (60) wp.org #17 ↓1 18 WP Telegram Widget and Join Link 4K+ · 4.9★ (31) wp.org #16 ↓1 2 too high 19 Crypto Converter ⚡ Widget 1K+ · 4.6★ (24) wp.org #19 ↓1 20 Login Widget With Shortcode 5K+ · 3.8★ (29) wp.org #15 ↓1 5 too high 21 C Custom Post Type Widgets 10K+ · 4.8★ (14) wp.org #20 ↓1 1 too high 22 Genesis Widget Column Classes 5K+ · 4.5★ (8) wp.org #14 ↓1 8 too high 23 Simple Google Calendar Outlook Events Widget 1K+ · 5.0★ (6) wp.org #21 2 too high 24 WPZOOM Addons for Elementor – Starter Templates & Widgets 20K+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #18 ↓1 6 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.