wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “hide bar”
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 “hide bar”, 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
WPC Free Shipping Bar for WooCommerce shows at wp.org #15 but places #23 on merit, a gap of 8 places. Its 3K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 4.2★ average from 13 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
Buried gem
My Sticky Bar – Floating Notification Bar & Sticky Header (formerly myStickymenu) places #5 on merit, 4.9★ from 1199 reviews, but shows at wp.org #14. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.
Hide My WP Ghost – Security & Firewall 100K+ · 4.5★ (373)
wp.org #1 2 
WP Hide & Security Enhancer 50K+ · 4.3★ (275) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #2 ↑1 3 
WPFront Notification Bar 40K+ · 4.5★ (131)
wp.org #4 1 too low 4 
Auto Hide Admin Bar 3K+ · 4.8★ (32)
wp.org #3 ↓1 1 too high 5 My Sticky Bar – Floating Notification Bar & Sticky Header (formerly myStickymenu) 100K+ · 4.9★ (1199)
wp.org #14 9 too low 6 
Hide Admin Bar from Non-Admins 10K+ · 4.3★ (30)
wp.org #5 1 too high 7 
Disable Admin Notices – Hide Dashboard Notifications 100K+ · 4.7★ (367)
wp.org #12 5 too low 8 
Hide Admin Bar 20K+ · 4.5★ (30)
wp.org #7 ↑1 1 too high 9 
Admin and Site Enhancements (ASE) 200K+ · 5.0★ (423)
wp.org #18 9 too low 10 
Hide Admin Bar Based on User Roles – Disable the WordPress Toolbar by Role or Capability 20K+ · 3.9★ (20) thin reviews
wp.org #6 ↑1 4 too high 11 
Cookie Bar 10K+ · 4.9★ (23) thin reviews
wp.org #10 1 too high 12 
Admin Bar Editor – Toolbar Customization with User Role based access & Custom menus 3K+ · 4.4★ (24) thin reviews
wp.org #8 ↓2 4 too high 13 
EU Cookies Bar for WordPress 9K+ · 4.8★ (26)
wp.org #11 2 too high 14 
Speed Contact Bar 4K+ · 4.6★ (56)
wp.org #13 1 too high 15 
Essential Addons for Elementor – Popular Elementor Templates & Widgets 1M+ · 4.9★ (4132) not PHP-current
wp.org #24 9 too low 16 
MC4WP: Mailchimp Top Bar – Email Subscribe Notification Bar 6K+ · 4.6★ (31) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #9 7 too high 17 
Notibar – Notification Bar for WordPress 8K+ · 4.8★ (71)
wp.org #23 6 too low 18 
HashBar – Announcement, Notification Bar & Popup Campaign 9K+ · 4.2★ (38)
wp.org #17 1 too high 19 
Easy Notification Bar 9K+ · 4.6★ (16) thin reviews
wp.org #16 3 too high 20 
Freetop – Free Shipping Bar for WooCommerce 2K+ · 4.7★ (40) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #19 1 too high 21 
Hide Dashboard Notifications 20K+ · 3.9★ (33)
wp.org #22 1 too low 22 
Hide Cart Functions 3K+ · 4.6★ (14) thin reviews
wp.org #20 2 too high 23 WPC Free Shipping Bar for WooCommerce 3K+ · 4.2★ (13) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews
wp.org #15 8 too high 24 
Notice Bar 700+ · 3.6★ (9) thin reviews
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.