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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “image caption hover”

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 “image caption hover”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 11 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

Image Ticker Carousel | by Creavi shows at wp.org #14 but places #20 on merit, a gap of 6 places. Its 500+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 3 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Unlimited Elements for Elementor places #10 on merit, 4.8★ from 525 reviews, but shows at wp.org #16. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Image Hover Effects Ultimate ( Image Gallery, Effects, Lightbox, Comparison & Magnifier ) 10K+ · 4.7★ (250) wp.org #1 2 Modula Image Gallery – Photo Grid & Video Gallery 100K+ · 4.7★ (616) wp.org #2 3 FooGallery Photo Gallery : Image, Video & Masonry Galleries 100K+ · 4.8★ (995) wp.org #3 4 Robo Gallery – Photo & Image Slider 40K+ · 4.3★ (406) wp.org #4 5 Photo Gallery, Sliders, Proofing and Themes – NextGEN Gallery 300K+ · 4.3★ (4342) wp.org #5 6 Photo Gallery by Supsystic – Image Gallery, Masonry, Albums & Lightbox 20K+ · 4.6★ (498) wp.org #10 ↓2 4 too low 7 Kadence Blocks — Page Builder Toolkit for Gutenberg Editor 600K+ · 4.8★ (333) wp.org #7 ↑4 8 ElementsKit Elementor Addons – Advanced Widgets & Templates Addons for Elementor 1M+ · 4.9★ (2051) wp.org #12 ↓2 4 too low 9 Image Gallery 3K+ · 4.4★ (32) wp.org #6 3 too high 10 Unlimited Elements for Elementor 300K+ · 4.8★ (525) wp.org #16 6 too low 11 Lightbox & Modal Popup WordPress Plugin – FooBox 100K+ · 3.9★ (95) wp.org #9 ↓2 2 too high 12 Easy Image Gallery 4K+ · 4.6★ (41) wp.org #8 ↑5 4 too high 13 Image Photo Gallery Final Tiles Grid 20K+ · 4.7★ (353) wp.org #15 2 too low 14 Product Gallery Slider, Additional Variation Images, Product Video, Product Image Zoom and Lightbox for WooCommerce – Reno Product Gallery (formerly WooGallery) 20K+ · 4.9★ (162) wp.org #17 3 too low 15 Image Hover Effects – WordPress Plugin 3K+ · 4.4★ (42) wp.org #11 ↓2 4 too high 16 Photo Gallery by Re Gallery: Responsive Image Gallery with AI SEO 700+ · 5.0★ (22) wp.org #20 ↑2 4 too low 17 Image Hover Effects For WPBakery Page Builder 3K+ · 4.3★ (14) wp.org #13 ↓1 4 too high 18 Before After Image Comparison – Visual Comparison for Two Images 3K+ · 4.2★ (12) wp.org #18 19 Vertical Image Slider – Responsive Thumbnail Slider with Lightbox 1K+ · 4.9★ (7) wp.org #24 5 too low 20 Image Ticker Carousel | by Creavi 500+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #14 6 too high 21 Carousel Block – Showcase Images in Elegant Sliding Displays 7K+ · 5.0★ (6) wp.org #22 ↓1 1 too low 22 Image Gallery Block – Showcase Photos in Stunning Responsive Grids 2K+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #19 3 too high 23 WP Before After Image Slider – Interactive Image and Video Comparison Plugin for WordPress 1K+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #21 ↓1 2 too high 24 Featured Image Pro Post Grid 900+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #23 1 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.