wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “grid builder”
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 “grid builder”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 10 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
Fancy Post Grid – Ultimate Post Grid Builder shows at wp.org #11 but places #24 on merit, a gap of 13 places. Its 300+ 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
Website Builder by SeedProd — Theme Builder, Landing Page Builder, Coming Soon Page, Maintenance Mode places #11 on merit, 4.9★ from 4699 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.
Elementor Website Builder – more than just a page builder 10M+ · 4.5★ (7323) not PHP-currentheavy footprint
wp.org #1 2 
Modula Image Gallery – Photo Grid & Video Gallery 100K+ · 4.7★ (616)
wp.org #2 3 
Beaver Builder Page Builder – Drag and Drop Website Builder 100K+ · 4.7★ (394)
wp.org #3 4 
The Post Grid – Shortcode, Gutenberg Blocks and Elementor Addon for Post Grid 100K+ · 4.8★ (265)
wp.org #4 ↑1 5 
Royal Addons for Elementor – Addons and Templates Kit for Elementor 600K+ · 4.8★ (612)
wp.org #5 ↓1 6 
Fluent Forms – Customizable Contact Forms, Survey, Quiz, & Conversational Form Builder 800K+ · 4.8★ (807)
wp.org #9 ↓2 3 too low 7 
Kadence Blocks — Page Builder Toolkit for Gutenberg Editor 600K+ · 4.8★ (333) heavy footprint
wp.org #7 ↑7 8 
Post Grid 30K+ · 4.3★ (163)
wp.org #8 ↓1 9 
Widgets for Google Reviews 1M+ · 4.9★ (2667)
wp.org #12 3 too low 10 
Essential Addons for Elementor – Popular Elementor Templates & Widgets 1M+ · 4.9★ (4132) not PHP-current
wp.org #10 ↑2 11 Website Builder by SeedProd — Theme Builder, Landing Page Builder, Coming Soon Page, Maintenance Mode 600K+ · 4.9★ (4699)
wp.org #18 ↓2 7 too low 12 
Ultimate Addons for Elementor – Widgets, Templates, WooCommerce & Header Footer Builder 2M+ · 4.9★ (2528)
wp.org #16 ↑4 4 too low 13 
Xpro Theme Builder For Elementor – FREE 20K+ · 5.0★ (14) thin reviews
wp.org #6 7 too high 14 
Post Grid Addon for Elementor 10K+ · 4.9★ (76)
wp.org #13 ↑2 1 too high 15 
Ultimate Addons for Beaver Builder (UABB) 20K+ · 5.0★ (332)
wp.org #22 ↑1 7 too low 16 
The Plus Addons for Elementor – Mega Menu, Header Footer, Post Grid, AI Widgets & Templates 100K+ · 4.6★ (388)
wp.org #20 ↓2 4 too low 17 
Cost Calculator Builder 20K+ · 4.5★ (393)
wp.org #21 4 too low 18 
Kirki – Freeform Page Builder, Website Builder & Customizer 400K+ · 4.5★ (81)
wp.org #15 ↓3 3 too high 19 
Colibri Page Builder 80K+ · 4.4★ (80)
wp.org #17 ↓8 2 too high 20 
Product Category Slider & Grid for WooCommerce – Reno Product Category 9K+ · 4.8★ (91) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #14 ↓4 6 too high 21 
Gallery PhotoBlocks 3K+ · 5.0★ (76)
wp.org #24 ↓3 3 too low 22 
Greenshift – animation and page builder blocks 70K+ · 4.8★ (107) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #19 ↓2 3 too high 23 
Bold Page Builder 40K+ · 3.6★ (66)
wp.org #23 ↓4 24 Fancy Post Grid – Ultimate Post Grid Builder 300+ · 5.0★ (2) not PHP-current thin reviews
wp.org #11 ↑2 13 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.