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

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 tooltip”, 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

Image Optimizer – Compress Images and Convert to WebP or AVIF shows at wp.org #2 but places #18 on merit, a gap of 16 places. Its 1M+ installs carry it up the search order; its 1.7★ average from 81 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Premium Addons for Elementor – AI-Ready Elementor Addons, Widgets & Templates places #7 on merit, 4.9★ from 1680 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.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Smush – Image Optimization, Compression, Lazy Load, WebP & CDN 1M+ · 4.8★ (6053) wp.org #1 2 Essential Addons for Elementor – Popular Elementor Templates & Widgets 1M+ · 4.9★ (4132) wp.org #3 1 too low 3 WP-Optimize – Cache, Compress images, Minify & Clean database to boost page speed & performance 1M+ · 4.8★ (2617) wp.org #5 2 too low 4 Modula Image Gallery – Photo Grid & Video Gallery 100K+ · 4.7★ (616) wp.org #6 2 too low 5 Variation Swatches for WooCommerce 300K+ · 4.8★ (926) wp.org #4 1 too high 6 ElementsKit Elementor Addons – Advanced Widgets & Templates Addons for Elementor 1M+ · 4.9★ (2051) wp.org #9 3 too low 7 Premium Addons for Elementor – AI-Ready Elementor Addons, Widgets & Templates 600K+ · 4.9★ (1680) wp.org #14 7 too low 8 CM Tooltip Glossary 7K+ · 4.3★ (157) wp.org #8 9 Variation Swatches for WooCommerce – Color, Image & Size Swatches 200K+ · 4.6★ (51) wp.org #7 2 too high 10 Image Widget 100K+ · 4.9★ (287) wp.org #13 ↓1 3 too low 11 Perfect Images: Regenerate Thumbnails, Image Sizes, WebP & AVIF 60K+ · 4.8★ (279) wp.org #15 4 too low 12 Tooltipy (tooltips for WP) 1K+ · 4.6★ (68) wp.org #11 1 too high 13 Image Hotspot – Map Image Annotation 3K+ · 4.9★ (22) wp.org #10 3 too high 14 Photo Gallery by 10Web – Mobile-Friendly Image Gallery 100K+ · 4.5★ (1581) wp.org #23 ↓1 9 too low 15 T Tooltips for WordPress 5K+ · 3.8★ (75) wp.org #16 1 too low 16 Variation Swatches for WooCommerce 9K+ · 4.7★ (55) wp.org #22 ↑2 6 too low 17 Interactive Image Map Plugin – Draw Attention 20K+ · 4.9★ (114) wp.org #24 7 too low 18 Image Optimizer – Compress Images and Convert to WebP or AVIF 1M+ · 1.7★ (81) wp.org #2 16 too high 19 TP Product Image Flipper for WooCommerce 9K+ · 4.7★ (24) wp.org #17 2 too high 20 Image Hotspot by DevVN 20K+ · 4.3★ (29) wp.org #20 21 Interactive Image Map Builder 1K+ · 5.0★ (17) wp.org #19 2 too high 22 Image Optimization For SEO 3K+ · 3.7★ (12) wp.org #18 4 too high 23 Glossary Tooltip – Highlight Terms & Show Tooltips 100+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #12 ↑1 11 too high 24 ImageLinks – Interactive Image Builder with Hotspots 1K+ · 3.9★ (9) 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.