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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “information elements”

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 “information elements”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 14 of the top 20. 5 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

Hash Elements shows at wp.org #3 but places #13 on merit, a gap of 10 places. Its 5K+ 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

Admin and Site Enhancements (ASE) places #10 on merit, 5.0★ from 423 reviews, but shows at wp.org #24. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Elementor Website Builder – more than just a page builder 10M+ · 4.5★ (7323) wp.org #1 2 Addon Elements for Elementor (formerly Elementor Addon Elements) 80K+ · 4.8★ (172) wp.org #2 3 Essential Addons for Elementor – Popular Elementor Templates & Widgets 1M+ · 4.9★ (4132) wp.org #6 3 too low 4 Forminator Forms – Contact Form, Payment Form & Custom Form Builder 600K+ · 4.8★ (2144) wp.org #12 8 too low 5 All-in-one Sticky Floating Contact Form, Call, Click to Chat, and 50+ Social Icon Tabs – My Sticky Elements 40K+ · 4.9★ (542) wp.org #14 9 too low 6 TranslatePress – Translate Multilingual sites with AI Translation 400K+ · 4.7★ (1667) wp.org #18 12 too low 7 ElementsKit Elementor Addons – Advanced Widgets & Templates Addons for Elementor 1M+ · 4.9★ (2051) wp.org #16 9 too low 8 Elements Hive for Breakdance 1K+ · 5.0★ (19) wp.org #5 3 too high 9 Card Elements for Elementor 3K+ · 5.0★ (10) wp.org #4 5 too high 10 Admin and Site Enhancements (ASE) 200K+ · 5.0★ (423) wp.org #24 14 too low 11 Complianz GDPR/CCPA Cookie Consent Banner 1M+ · 4.7★ (1667) wp.org #22 11 too low 12 Elements Plus! 6K+ · 4.8★ (23) wp.org #10 2 too high 13 Hash Elements 5K+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #3 10 too high 14 Click to Chat – HoliThemes 600K+ · 4.8★ (131) wp.org #19 5 too low 15 Wow Elements Addons for Elementor 50+ · 5.0★ (8) wp.org #13 2 too high 16 Spider Elements – Premium Elementor Widgets & Addons Library 400+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #8 8 too high 17 Fancy Elements for Avada 400+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #7 10 too high 18 WP Basic Elements 100+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #17 1 too high 19 Mega Elements – Addons for Elementor 10K+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #9 10 too high 20 Generic Elements 500+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #11 9 too high 21 Ultimate Bootstrap Elements for Elementor 6K+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #15 6 too high 22 Social Elements for WPBakery Page Builder 60+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #20 2 too high 23 Amedea – Unique Design Elements for Elementor 500+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #21 2 too high 24 If-So Conditional Content for Elementor 1K+ · 5.0★ (1) 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.