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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “like buttons”

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 “like buttons”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 14 of the top 20. 4 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

All-in-one Like Widget shows at wp.org #11 but places #19 on merit, a gap of 8 places. Its 1K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 4.9★ average from 7 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Floating Chat Widget: Contact Chat Icons, Telegram Chat, Line Messenger, WeChat, Email, SMS, Call Button – Chaty places #6 on merit, 5.0★ from 1244 reviews, but shows at wp.org #12. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 WP ULike – Like Buttons, Voting & Engagement Analytics 60K+ · 4.8★ (283) wp.org #1 2 Like Button Rating ♥ LikeBtn 3K+ · 4.4★ (273) wp.org #2 3 Elementor Website Builder – more than just a page builder 10M+ · 4.5★ (7322) wp.org #7 ↑2 4 too low 4 Simple Share Buttons Adder 40K+ · 4.3★ (627) wp.org #9 ↑1 5 too low 5 Easy Social Like Box – Popup – Sidebar Widget 6K+ · 4.4★ (18) wp.org #3 ↑2 2 too high 6 Floating Chat Widget: Contact Chat Icons, Telegram Chat, Line Messenger, WeChat, Email, SMS, Call Button – Chaty 300K+ · 5.0★ (1244) wp.org #12 ↑1 6 too low 7 Simple Social Media Share Buttons – Social Sharing for Everyone 20K+ · 4.8★ (194) wp.org #6 ↑1 1 too high 8 Comments Like Dislike 4K+ · 4.6★ (38) wp.org #5 ↑1 3 too high 9 AddToAny Share Buttons 300K+ · 4.7★ (1114) wp.org #8 1 too high 10 Posts Like Dislike 5K+ · 4.3★ (23) wp.org #4 ↓1 6 too high 11 MaxButtons – Create buttons 70K+ · 4.9★ (1093) wp.org #15 ↑1 4 too low 12 Chatway Live Chat – AI Chatbot, Customer Support, FAQ & Helpdesk Customer Service & Chat Buttons 30K+ · 5.0★ (775) wp.org #17 ↑2 5 too low 13 Call Now Button – The Free Click to Call Button for WordPress 200K+ · 4.8★ (102) wp.org #18 ↑2 5 too low 14 Solid Post Likes 500+ · 4.8★ (9) wp.org #10 ↑1 4 too high 15 Floating Chat Buttons – Click to Call or Chat, Email 1K+ · 4.9★ (54) wp.org #24 9 too low 16 Social Like Box and Page by WpDevArt 5K+ · 4.2★ (88) wp.org #16 ↑2 17 Smooth Page Scroll Up/Down Buttons 2K+ · 5.0★ (21) wp.org #20 ↑3 3 too low 18 Payment Button for PayPal 4K+ · 4.5★ (40) wp.org #21 3 too low 19 All-in-one Like Widget 1K+ · 4.9★ (7) wp.org #11 ↑1 8 too high 20 ShareThis Share Buttons 10K+ · 3.5★ (26) wp.org #14 ↑1 6 too high 21 Sticky Buttons – Floating Buttons Builder 10K+ · 3.7★ (6) wp.org #13 ↑1 8 too high 22 Button Block – Stylish buttons that get more clicks 5K+ · 5.0★ (7) wp.org #22 ↑2 23 PayPal Payment Buttons 500+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #23 24 ShareThis Reaction Buttons 600+ · 3.8★ (5) wp.org #19 ↑3 5 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.