Plugin Pulse Beta
← Rankings

wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “menu icon”

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 “menu icon”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 3 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

Icon List Block – Add Icon-Based Lists with Custom Styles shows at wp.org #8 but places #22 on merit, a gap of 14 places. Its 4K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 3.7★ average from 6 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 #23. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Menu Icons by Themeisle – Add Icons to Navigation Menus 100K+ · 4.9★ (851) wp.org #1 2 WP Menu Icons 20K+ · 4.9★ (139) wp.org #2 3 Elementor Website Builder – more than just a page builder 10M+ · 4.5★ (7323) wp.org #3 ↑2 4 Admin Menu Editor 300K+ · 4.6★ (312) wp.org #4 5 Max Mega Menu 300K+ · 4.8★ (882) wp.org #6 ↓3 1 too low 6 Orbit Fox: Duplicate Page, Menu Icons, SVG Support, Cookie Notice, Custom Fonts & More 100K+ · 4.8★ (317) wp.org #5 ↑5 1 too high 7 Responsive Menu – Mobile Menu & Hamburger Menu Builder 70K+ · 4.5★ (574) wp.org #9 2 too low 8 WP Responsive Menu 30K+ · 4.3★ (100) wp.org #7 ↑1 1 too high 9 WP Mobile Menu – The Mobile-Friendly Responsive Menu 70K+ · 4.7★ (256) wp.org #10 ↓3 1 too low 10 ElementsKit Elementor Addons – Advanced Widgets & Templates Addons for Elementor 1M+ · 4.9★ (2051) wp.org #17 ↑3 7 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 #23 12 too low 12 Menu Cart for WooCommerce 70K+ · 4.6★ (99) wp.org #14 ↓3 2 too low 13 Skyboot Custom Icons for Elementor – Elementor Icons library – 14300+ Icons 200K+ · 5.0★ (22) wp.org #11 ↑1 2 too high 14 Float menu – awesome floating side menu 30K+ · 4.4★ (41) wp.org #12 ↑1 2 too high 15 Simple Floating Menu 10K+ · 5.0★ (38) wp.org #16 1 too low 16 Iks Menu – WordPress Category Accordion Menu & FAQs 10K+ · 5.0★ (27) wp.org #18 ↓1 2 too low 17 WP Bottom Menu 20K+ · 4.5★ (23) wp.org #15 2 too high 18 Advanced Sidebar Menu 10K+ · 4.5★ (37) wp.org #20 ↑3 2 too low 19 WP Menu Cart 8K+ · 4.8★ (23) wp.org #19 ↑2 20 Ollie Menu Designer 6K+ · 5.0★ (8) wp.org #13 ↑1 7 too high 21 Offcanvas Mobile Menu 800+ · 4.9★ (18) wp.org #24 3 too low 22 Icon List Block – Add Icon-Based Lists with Custom Styles 4K+ · 3.7★ (6) wp.org #8 ↓2 14 too high 23 Fixed Bottom Menu 4K+ · 5.0★ (11) wp.org #22 1 too high 24 Side Menu Lite – Sticky Floating Side Menu 7K+ · 4.0★ (12) wp.org #21 ↑3 3 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.