wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “media 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 “media widget”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 9 of the top 20.
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
Social Media Icon Widget – Social Profile Links with Gutenberg Block shows at wp.org #14 but places #23 on merit, a gap of 9 places. Its 4K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 4.1★ average from 16 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
Buried gem
Social Media Feather places #12 on merit, 4.6★ from 506 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.
Media Library Assistant 70K+ · 4.8★ (202)
wp.org #1 ↑2 2 
Enable Media Replace 600K+ · 4.4★ (302)
wp.org #2 ↓1 3 
ElementsKit Elementor Addons – Advanced Widgets & Templates Addons for Elementor 1M+ · 4.9★ (2051)
wp.org #3 ↑1 4 
Media Cleaner: Delete Unused Images & Clean Your Media Library 90K+ · 4.6★ (779)
wp.org #4 ↓2 5 
Essential Addons for Elementor – Popular Elementor Templates & Widgets 1M+ · 4.9★ (4132)
wp.org #5 ↑1 6 
Premium Addons for Elementor – AI-Ready Elementor Addons, Widgets & Templates 600K+ · 4.9★ (1680)
wp.org #6 ↑1 7 
Elementor Website Builder – more than just a page builder 10M+ · 4.5★ (7322)
wp.org #8 ↑1 1 too low 8 
Social Media Share Buttons & Social Sharing Icons 100K+ · 4.8★ (5333)
wp.org #12 ↓7 4 too low 9 
Black Studio TinyMCE Widget 200K+ · 4.8★ (191)
wp.org #10 1 too low 10 
Recent Posts Widget With Thumbnails 100K+ · 4.8★ (215)
wp.org #11 ↑3 1 too low 11 
Tagembed: Social Media Feeds and Customer Reviews Widget 9K+ · 3.9★ (62)
wp.org #7 ↑1 4 too high 12 Social Media Feather 10K+ · 4.6★ (506)
wp.org #17 ↓1 5 too low 13 
SiteOrigin Widgets Bundle 400K+ · 4.9★ (134)
wp.org #13 ↑4 14 
Ultimate Addons for Elementor – Widgets, Templates, WooCommerce & Header Footer Builder 2M+ · 4.9★ (2528)
wp.org #19 5 too low 15 
Widgets for Social Photo Feed 10K+ · 4.7★ (28)
wp.org #9 ↑2 6 too high 16 
Buttonizer – Social Media Share Buttons, Social Icons, & Social Feeds 40K+ · 4.8★ (396)
wp.org #21 ↓1 5 too low 17 
Translate WordPress with GTranslate 900K+ · 4.9★ (4962)
wp.org #24 ↓2 7 too low 18 
Image Widget 100K+ · 4.9★ (287)
wp.org #22 ↓1 4 too low 19 
Timeline Widget For Elementor (Elementor Timeline, Vertical & Horizontal Timeline) 70K+ · 4.8★ (248)
wp.org #23 4 too low 20 
Export Media URLs 7K+ · 5.0★ (29)
wp.org #15 ↓3 5 too high 21 
WPZOOM Social Feed Widget & Block 50K+ · 4.3★ (51)
wp.org #18 3 too high 22 
Media Hygiene: Remove or Delete Unused Images and More! 4K+ · 4.2★ (41)
wp.org #20 ↓1 2 too high 23 Social Media Icon Widget – Social Profile Links with Gutenberg Block 4K+ · 4.1★ (16) thin reviews
wp.org #14 ↓1 9 too high 24 
Taggbox: Social Media Feed Widget 1K+ · 5.0★ (4) thin reviews
wp.org #16 ↓1 8 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.