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← Rankings

wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “layer”

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 “layer”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 4 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

Xpro Slider For Beaver Builder – Lite shows at wp.org #11 but places #24 on merit, a gap of 13 places. Its 400+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 1 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 #11 on merit, 4.9★ from 1680 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 Slider, Gallery, and Carousel by MetaSlider – Image Slider, Video Slider 500K+ · 4.6★ (743) wp.org #1 2 Smart Slider 3 800K+ · 4.9★ (1125) wp.org #3 1 too low 3 GTM4WP – A Google Tag Manager (GTM) plugin for WordPress 700K+ · 4.5★ (155) wp.org #2 1 too high 4 Popups for Divi 100K+ · 4.8★ (442) wp.org #5 ↑4 1 too low 5 Depicter — Popup & Slider Builder 70K+ · 4.6★ (235) wp.org #4 1 too high 6 Spam Protection | Maspik 30K+ · 4.7★ (87) wp.org #6 ↓1 7 WP Go Maps – Google Map, OpenStreetMap, Leaflet Map 300K+ · 4.8★ (3055) wp.org #9 ↓1 2 too low 8 Elementor Website Builder – more than just a page builder 10M+ · 4.5★ (7323) wp.org #7 ↓1 1 too high 9 Advanced Ads – Ad Manager & AdSense 90K+ · 4.9★ (1463) wp.org #10 ↑5 1 too low 10 Easy Google Maps by Supsystic – Custom Markers, Clustering & Map Themes 20K+ · 4.6★ (251) wp.org #12 ↑1 2 too low 11 Premium Addons for Elementor – AI-Ready Elementor Addons, Widgets & Templates 600K+ · 4.9★ (1680) wp.org #16 5 too low 12 Security Optimizer – The All-In-One Protection Plugin 1M+ · 4.5★ (157) wp.org #8 ↓1 4 too high 13 WP 2FA – Two-factor authentication for WordPress 100K+ · 4.7★ (184) wp.org #14 ↑4 1 too low 14 PixelYourSite – Your smart PIXEL (TAG) & API Manager 400K+ · 4.3★ (281) wp.org #13 ↓2 1 too high 15 Limit Login Attempts Security – Login Security, 2FA, Firewall, Brute Force Prevention 1M+ · 4.8★ (1488) wp.org #18 ↑2 3 too low 16 W3 Total Cache 900K+ · 4.4★ (5420) wp.org #24 ↓2 8 too low 17 Master Slider – Responsive Touch Slider 60K+ · 4.6★ (504) wp.org #15 ↓3 2 too high 18 Loginizer 1M+ · 4.8★ (1033) wp.org #19 1 too low 19 Login Lockdown & Protection 100K+ · 4.3★ (61) wp.org #17 ↓3 2 too high 20 BackWPup – WordPress Backup & Restore Plugin 400K+ · 4.0★ (1323) wp.org #23 3 too low 21 GTM Kit – Google Tag Manager & GA4 integration 30K+ · 4.8★ (20) wp.org #20 ↓1 1 too high 22 MKL Product Configurator for WooCommerce – 2D & 3D Live Preview 2K+ · 4.8★ (42) wp.org #22 ↓1 23 Branded Social Images – Open Graph Images with logo and extra text layer 800+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #21 ↓4 2 too high 24 Xpro Slider For Beaver Builder – Lite 400+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #11 ↓1 13 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.