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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “hide widgets”

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 widgets”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 9 of the top 20. 2 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

Classic Editor and Classic Widgets shows at wp.org #14 but places #23 on merit, a gap of 9 places. Its 20K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 5 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Disable Admin Notices – Hide Dashboard Notifications places #12 on merit, 4.7★ from 367 reviews, but shows at wp.org #21. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Widgets for Google Reviews 1M+ · 4.9★ (2667) wp.org #1 2 WPS Hide Login 2M+ · 4.8★ (2111) wp.org #2 3 Hide My WP Ghost – Security & Firewall 100K+ · 4.5★ (373) wp.org #3 4 Essential Addons for Elementor – Popular Elementor Templates & Widgets 1M+ · 4.9★ (4132) wp.org #4 ↑1 5 ElementsKit Elementor Addons – Advanced Widgets & Templates Addons for Elementor 1M+ · 4.9★ (2051) wp.org #6 1 too low 6 Premium Addons for Elementor – AI-Ready Elementor Addons, Widgets & Templates 600K+ · 4.9★ (1680) wp.org #8 ↓1 2 too low 7 SiteOrigin Widgets Bundle 400K+ · 4.9★ (134) wp.org #7 ↓4 8 WP Hide & Security Enhancer 50K+ · 4.3★ (275) wp.org #5 ↓1 3 too high 9 Dynamic Widgets 10K+ · 4.7★ (109) wp.org #10 ↑2 1 too low 10 Widget Options – Advanced Conditional Visibility for Gutenberg Blocks & Classic Widgets 100K+ · 4.9★ (1516) wp.org #18 ↓2 8 too low 11 Ultimate Addons for Elementor – Widgets, Templates, WooCommerce & Header Footer Builder 2M+ · 4.9★ (2528) wp.org #17 ↑4 6 too low 12 Disable Admin Notices – Hide Dashboard Notifications 100K+ · 4.7★ (367) wp.org #21 ↓3 9 too low 13 Hide Posts 20K+ · 4.7★ (22) wp.org #9 ↓1 4 too high 14 Widget Context 30K+ · 4.5★ (98) wp.org #11 ↓2 3 too high 15 Recent Posts Widget With Thumbnails 100K+ · 4.8★ (215) wp.org #23 ↓3 8 too low 16 Widgets for Airbnb Reviews 6K+ · 4.6★ (60) wp.org #15 ↑4 1 too high 17 WP Tripadvisor Review Widgets 20K+ · 4.1★ (116) wp.org #19 ↓2 2 too low 18 Widgets for Booking.com Reviews 9K+ · 4.9★ (65) wp.org #20 ↓7 2 too low 19 Widgets for Reviews & Recommendations 8K+ · 4.6★ (98) wp.org #24 ↓2 5 too low 20 LWS Hide Login 20K+ · 4.7★ (12) wp.org #12 ↓2 8 too high 21 MM Title Manager — Hide Page and Post Titles 10K+ · 4.4★ (17) wp.org #13 ↓2 8 too high 22 Events Widgets For Elementor And The Events Calendar 10K+ · 4.5★ (108) wp.org #22 23 Classic Editor and Classic Widgets 20K+ · 5.0★ (5) wp.org #14 9 too high 24 WP Hide Post — Hide Posts, Pages, Custom Post Types, and Control Products Visibility for WooCommerce 3K+ · 5.0★ (5) wp.org #16 ↓1 8 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.