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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “location widget”

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 “location widget”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 12 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

User IP and Location shows at wp.org #7 but places #20 on merit, a gap of 13 places. Its 3K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 4.2★ average from 9 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 #11 on merit, 5.0★ from 1244 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 Widgets for Google Reviews 1M+ · 4.9★ (2667) wp.org #1 2 Location Weather – WordPress Weather Forecast, Air Quality & Weather Widget 10K+ · 4.5★ (103) wp.org #2 ↓1 3 Essential Addons for Elementor – Popular Elementor Templates & Widgets 1M+ · 4.9★ (4132) wp.org #3 ↓1 4 Premium Addons for Elementor – AI-Ready Elementor Addons, Widgets & Templates 600K+ · 4.9★ (1680) wp.org #4 ↓1 5 Rich Showcase for Google Reviews 100K+ · 4.9★ (1623) wp.org #5 ↓1 6 Ultimate Addons for Elementor – Widgets, Templates, WooCommerce & Header Footer Builder 2M+ · 4.9★ (2528) wp.org #9 ↑2 3 too low 7 UpdraftPlus: WP Backup & Migration Plugin 4M+ · 4.8★ (8708) wp.org #11 ↓2 4 too low 8 Black Studio TinyMCE Widget 200K+ · 4.8★ (191) wp.org #8 9 Widgets for Social Photo Feed 10K+ · 4.7★ (28) wp.org #6 ↓1 3 too high 10 Maps Widget for Google Maps 20K+ · 4.6★ (512) wp.org #13 3 too low 11 Floating Chat Widget: Contact Chat Icons, Telegram Chat, Line Messenger, WeChat, Email, SMS, Call Button – Chaty 300K+ · 5.0★ (1244) wp.org #16 ↓1 5 too low 12 Events Manager – Calendar, Bookings, Tickets, Appointments and more! 60K+ · 4.2★ (551) wp.org #10 ↓4 2 too high 13 Translate WordPress with GTranslate 900K+ · 4.9★ (4962) wp.org #22 ↓2 9 too low 14 Complianz GDPR/CCPA Cookie Consent Banner 1M+ · 4.7★ (1667) wp.org #19 5 too low 15 Max Mega Menu 300K+ · 4.8★ (882) wp.org #23 ↑1 8 too low 16 WP Store Locator 40K+ · 4.8★ (312) wp.org #21 ↓2 5 too low 17 WPZOOM Connect: Social Icons Widget & Block, Share Buttons & Click to Chat 90K+ · 4.9★ (144) wp.org #18 1 too low 18 Reviews Widgets for Google, TripAdvisor, Yelp & Recommendations 10K+ · 4.9★ (326) wp.org #14 ↓2 4 too high 19 Sticky Chat Widget – Floating Chat Icons, Contact Form, Call, Click to Chat, Email & Message Buttons 10K+ · 5.0★ (39) wp.org #15 ↓1 4 too high 20 User IP and Location 3K+ · 4.2★ (9) wp.org #7 13 too high 21 Back Button Widget 4K+ · 5.0★ (10) wp.org #17 ↓1 4 too high 22 Simple Location 300+ · 4.6★ (8) wp.org #12 ↓2 10 too high 23 Simple Google Calendar Outlook Events Widget 1K+ · 5.0★ (6) wp.org #20 ↓3 3 too high 24 Weather Widget Pro 1K+ · 3.9★ (8) wp.org #24 ↓3

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.