wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “gradient button”

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 “gradient button”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 16 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

LMSCrafter Gradient Text for Elementor shows at wp.org #6 but places #20 on merit, a gap of 14 places. Its 100+ 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

Custom Login Page Customizer places #11 on merit, 4.9★ from 477 reviews, but shows at wp.org #19. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin signals wp.org

Elementor Website Builder – more than just a page builder 10M+ · 4.5★ (7322) wp.org #1 ↑1 2

MaxButtons – Create buttons 70K+ · 4.9★ (1093) wp.org #5 ↓1 3 too low 3

Button visually impaired 10K+ · 4.9★ (27) wp.org #3 4

Unlimited Elements for Elementor 300K+ · 4.8★ (525) wp.org #8 ↑2 4 too low 5

Premium Addons for Elementor – AI-Ready Elementor Addons, Widgets & Templates 600K+ · 4.9★ (1680) wp.org #11 6 too low 6

Kadence Blocks — Page Builder Toolkit for Gutenberg Editor 600K+ · 4.8★ (333) wp.org #10 ↑4 4 too low 7

Button 2K+ · 4.5★ (53) wp.org #7 8 G Gradient Button for Elementor 2K+ · 5.0★ (4) thin reviewsstale but ranked wp.org #2 ↓1 6 too high 9

Master Addons for Elementor – Elementor Addons, Widgets, Mega Menu Builder, Popup Builder, Widget Builder & Template Kits 30K+ · 4.5★ (212) wp.org #12 ↓3 3 too low 10

ElementsKit Elementor Addons – Advanced Widgets & Templates Addons for Elementor 1M+ · 4.9★ (2051) wp.org #17 ↑2 7 too low 11

Custom Login Page Customizer 50K+ · 4.9★ (477) wp.org #19 ↑1 8 too low 12

Divi Torque Lite 50K+ · 4.7★ (116) wp.org #15 ↑1 3 too low 13

Essential Addons for Elementor – Popular Elementor Templates & Widgets 1M+ · 4.9★ (4132) wp.org #24 ↓1 11 too low 14

CMP – Coming Soon & Maintenance Plugin by NiteoThemes 200K+ · 4.7★ (326) wp.org #23 9 too low 15

Safelayout Cute Preloader – CSS3 WordPress Preloader 10K+ · 5.0★ (84) wp.org #20 ↑1 5 too low 16

Bolt CTA Button – Floating Call Button for WordPress 2K+ · 5.0★ (4) thin reviews wp.org #4 ↑1 12 too high 17

Redux Framework 900K+ · 4.4★ (273) wp.org #18 ↓3 1 too low 18

Supreme Modules Lite – Divi Theme, Extra Theme and Divi Builder 100K+ · 4.8★ (109) wp.org #22 ↓4 4 too low 19

Piotnet Addons For Elementor 20K+ · 3.2★ (57) wp.org #13 ↓1 6 too high 20

LMSCrafter Gradient Text for Elementor 100+ · 5.0★ (2) thin reviews wp.org #6 14 too high 21

Swipe Slider – Make dynamic slider with solid, gradient, or image background 3K+ · 5.0★ (2) thin reviews wp.org #9 ↓1 12 too high 22

Safelayout Brilliant Buttons – WordPress Buttons 100+ · 5.0★ (3) thin reviews wp.org #21 ↑1 1 too high 23

Chat Floating Button BY XD 400+ · 0.0★ (0) thin reviews wp.org #14 ↓1 9 too high 24

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.