wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “jquery box”
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 “jquery box”, we and wp.org disagree on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 13 of the top 20.
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 the install base is organic or host-pushed, and its risk of being pulled.
Ranked above its merit
Modal Popup Box — Popup Maker & Popup Builder shows at wp.org #6 but places #23 on merit, a gap of 17 places. Its 2K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 3.5★ average from 10 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
Buried gem
PDF Invoices & Packing Slips for WooCommerce places #10 on merit, 5.0★ from 1865 reviews, but shows at wp.org #19. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.
Noptin – Newsletter, New Post Notifications & Email Automation 10K+ · 4.5★ (120)
wp.org #2 1 too low 2 
Popup Box – Easily Create WordPress Popups 6K+ · 5.0★ (11) thin reviews
wp.org #1 1 too high 3 
LightPress Lightbox 40K+ · 4.6★ (72)
wp.org #5 2 too low 4 
Coupzy Coupon Box for WooCommerce 1K+ · 4.6★ (37)
wp.org #4 5 
Simple Ajax Chat – Add a Fast, Secure Chat Box 2K+ · 4.9★ (215)
wp.org #8 ↓1 3 too low 6 
Admin and Site Enhancements (ASE) 200K+ · 5.0★ (423)
wp.org #12 ↓2 6 too low 7 
Schema & Structured Data for WP & AMP 100K+ · 4.5★ (252)
wp.org #11 ↓2 4 too low 8 
Simple Custom Post Order 300K+ · 4.8★ (588)
wp.org #13 ↓2 5 too low 9 
Counter Box – Add Countdowns, Timers & Dynamic Counters to WordPress 1K+ · 4.5★ (8) thin reviews
wp.org #3 6 too high 10 PDF Invoices & Packing Slips for WooCommerce 300K+ · 5.0★ (1865)
wp.org #19 ↓1 9 too low 11 
jQuery Post Splitter 100+ · 4.6★ (37)
wp.org #7 4 too high 12 
Ultimate Addons for Beaver Builder (UABB) 20K+ · 5.0★ (332)
wp.org #17 ↓1 5 too low 13 
Search & Filter 40K+ · 4.5★ (175)
wp.org #14 ↓1 1 too low 14 
HollerBox — Fast & Effective Popups & Lead-Generation 2K+ · 4.8★ (32)
wp.org #9 ↓1 5 too high 15 
WP-Optimize – Cache, Compress images, Minify & Clean database to boost page speed & performance 1M+ · 4.8★ (2617)
wp.org #20 ↓1 5 too low 16 
WP ULike – Like Buttons, Voting & Engagement Analytics 60K+ · 4.8★ (283)
wp.org #22 ↓1 6 too low 17 
CMB2 300K+ · 5.0★ (91)
wp.org #18 ↓1 1 too low 18 
Image CAPTCHA for Contact Form 7 and WPForms by HookAndHook (DSGVO/GDPR) 70K+ · 4.7★ (49)
wp.org #16 ↓1 2 too high 19 
Starbox – the Author Box for Humans 10K+ · 4.5★ (203)
wp.org #24 ↓1 5 too low 20 
Nexter Blocks – Gutenberg Blocks, Page Builder & AI Website Builder 9K+ · 4.8★ (90)
wp.org #21 ↓1 1 too low 21 
FancyBox for WordPress 30K+ · 4.6★ (92)
wp.org #23 ↓1 2 too low 22 C Commons In A Box 20+ · 5.0★ (9) thin reviews
wp.org #10 ↑2 12 too high 23 Modal Popup Box — Popup Maker & Popup Builder 2K+ · 3.5★ (10) thin reviews
wp.org #6 17 too high 24 
Cresta Posts Box 1K+ · 4.3★ (7) thin reviews
wp.org #15 ↓1 9 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.