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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “masonry layout”

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 “masonry layout”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 13 of the top 20. 1 plugin is 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

WPZOOM Portfolio Lite – Filterable Portfolio Plugin shows at wp.org #6 but places #23 on merit, a gap of 17 places. Its 20K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 2 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Easy Social Feed – Social Photos Gallery and Post Feed for WordPress places #8 on merit, 4.6★ from 502 reviews, but shows at wp.org #15. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 FooGallery Photo Gallery : Image, Video & Masonry Galleries 100K+ · 4.8★ (991) wp.org #1 2 Modula Image Gallery – Photo Grid & Video Gallery 100K+ · 4.7★ (616) wp.org #2 3 Portfolio Filter Gallery – Photo Gallery 20K+ · 4.8★ (348) wp.org #8 5 too low 4 Premium Addons for Elementor – AI-Ready Elementor Addons, Widgets & Templates 600K+ · 4.9★ (1678) wp.org #10 6 too low 5 WP Blog Post Layouts 9K+ · 4.7★ (83) wp.org #7 2 too low 6 SiteOrigin Widgets Bundle 400K+ · 4.9★ (134) wp.org #9 3 too low 7 Photonic Gallery & Lightbox for Flickr, SmugMug & Others 10K+ · 4.8★ (193) wp.org #13 6 too low 8 Easy Social Feed – Social Photos Gallery and Post Feed for WordPress 30K+ · 4.6★ (502) wp.org #15 7 too low 9 Ultimate Addons for Elementor – Widgets, Templates, WooCommerce & Header Footer Builder 2M+ · 4.9★ (2526) wp.org #16 7 too low 10 Blog Filter – Post Grid Filter by Category or Tag 7K+ · 4.9★ (81) wp.org #11 1 too low 11 Blogmentor – Blog Layouts for Elementor 4K+ · 4.7★ (7) wp.org #4 7 too high 12 Image Photo Gallery Final Tiles Grid 20K+ · 4.7★ (354) wp.org #14 2 too low 13 Robo Gallery – Photo & Image Slider 40K+ · 4.3★ (405) wp.org #21 8 too low 14 Video Gallery – YouTube Playlist, Channel Gallery by YotuWP 10K+ · 4.7★ (322) wp.org #24 10 too low 15 Custom Product Tabs for WooCommerce & WordPress Tabs Builder – Smart Tabs 10K+ · 4.9★ (134) wp.org #23 8 too low 16 CTC Masonry Gallery 🎨 1K+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #3 13 too high 17 Post Grid 30K+ · 4.3★ (163) wp.org #22 5 too low 18 Photo Gallery – GT3 Image Gallery & Gutenberg Block Gallery 10K+ · 4.8★ (147) wp.org #20 2 too low 19 WP Masonry & Infinite Scroll 200+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #5 14 too high 20 YMC Filter 4K+ · 4.8★ (34) wp.org #18 2 too high 21 Gallery Block by Galleryberg: Lightbox with Tiles, Masonry, Square, & Justified Layouts 2K+ · 5.0★ (9) wp.org #12 9 too high 22 Filter Gallery 3K+ · 4.6★ (22) wp.org #19 3 too high 23 WPZOOM Portfolio Lite – Filterable Portfolio Plugin 20K+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #6 17 too high 24 Elfi Masonry – Filterable Portfolio & Masonry Gallery Addon for Elementor 200+ · 3.0★ (2) wp.org #17 7 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.