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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “match height”

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 “match height”, we and wp.org disagree on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 11 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 the install base is organic or host-pushed, and its risk of being pulled.

Ranked above its merit

Gmap Block shows at wp.org #7 but places #20 on merit, a gap of 13 places. Its 10K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 3 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Smash Balloon Social Photo Feed – Easy Social Feeds Plugin places #11 on merit, 4.9★ from 4358 reviews, but shows at wp.org #17. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Premium Addons for Elementor – AI-Ready Elementor Addons, Widgets & Templates 600K+ · 4.9★ (1680) wp.org #3 2 too low 2 Custom Login Page Customizer 50K+ · 4.9★ (477) wp.org #4 2 too low 3 I iframe 60K+ · 4.4★ (56) wp.org #2 1 too high 4 matchHeight 2K+ · 5.0★ (8) wp.org #1 3 too high 5 Easy Google Maps by Supsystic – Custom Markers, Clustering & Map Themes 20K+ · 4.6★ (251) wp.org #5 6 LoginPress | wp-login Custom Login Page Customizer 200K+ · 4.8★ (1077) wp.org #9 3 too low 7 Simple Calendar – Google Calendar Plugin 50K+ · 3.8★ (397) wp.org #6 1 too high 8 Slider, Gallery, and Carousel by MetaSlider – Image Slider, Video Slider 500K+ · 4.6★ (743) wp.org #8 9 Kadence Blocks — Page Builder Toolkit for Gutenberg Editor 600K+ · 4.8★ (333) wp.org #10 1 too low 10 ElementsKit Elementor Addons – Advanced Widgets & Templates Addons for Elementor 1M+ · 4.9★ (2051) wp.org #13 3 too low 11 Smash Balloon Social Photo Feed – Easy Social Feeds Plugin 1M+ · 4.9★ (4358) wp.org #17 6 too low 12 WP Store Locator 40K+ · 4.8★ (312) wp.org #18 6 too low 13 Ultimate Addons for Elementor – Widgets, Templates, WooCommerce & Header Footer Builder 2M+ · 4.9★ (2528) wp.org #19 6 too low 14 Print Invoice & Delivery Notes for WooCommerce 30K+ · 4.4★ (140) wp.org #15 1 too low 15 Advanced AJAX Product Filters 50K+ · 4.7★ (387) wp.org #21 6 too low 16 Max Mega Menu 300K+ · 4.8★ (882) wp.org #24 8 too low 17 Easy Social Icons 20K+ · 4.4★ (84) wp.org #14 3 too high 18 Sticky Header Effects for Elementor 300K+ · 4.5★ (69) wp.org #16 2 too high 19 Options for Twenty Seventeen 8K+ · 4.8★ (57) wp.org #23 4 too low 20 Gmap Block 10K+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #7 13 too high 21 Custom iFrame – Embed PDFs, Videos, and External Content in WordPress (Elementor & Gutenberg) 4K+ · 5.0★ (5) wp.org #12 9 too high 22 WPZOOM Portfolio Lite – Filterable Portfolio Plugin 20K+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #11 11 too high 23 Smart Auto Upload Images – Import External Images 5K+ · 4.3★ (6) wp.org #22 1 too high 24 CookieAdmin – Cookie Consent Banner 400K+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #20 4 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.