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

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 shortcode”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 5 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

Restaurant Menu and Food Ordering shows at wp.org #15 but places #22 on merit, a gap of 7 places. Its 2K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 4.5★ average from 15 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

The Events Calendar Shortcode & Block places #12 on merit, 4.7★ from 101 reviews, but shows at wp.org #18. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Admin Menu Editor 300K+ · 4.6★ (312) wp.org #1 2 Max Mega Menu 300K+ · 4.8★ (882) wp.org #2 3 Menu Cart for WooCommerce 70K+ · 4.6★ (99) wp.org #4 ↑1 1 too low 4 Float menu – awesome floating side menu 30K+ · 4.4★ (41) wp.org #3 1 too high 5 Elementor Website Builder – more than just a page builder 10M+ · 4.5★ (7323) wp.org #7 ↑1 2 too low 6 Iks Menu – WordPress Category Accordion Menu & FAQs 10K+ · 5.0★ (27) wp.org #6 ↑1 7 Shortcode in Menus 50K+ · 4.7★ (82) wp.org #8 ↓4 1 too low 8 Simple Floating Menu 10K+ · 5.0★ (38) wp.org #11 3 too low 9 WP Date and Time Shortcode 10K+ · 4.9★ (31) wp.org #10 1 too low 10 Menu In Post 2K+ · 5.0★ (8) wp.org #5 ↑1 5 too high 11 Shortcode Redirect 10K+ · 4.3★ (31) wp.org #9 2 too high 12 The Events Calendar Shortcode & Block 10K+ · 4.7★ (101) wp.org #18 ↑1 6 too low 13 Simple Divi Shortcode 10K+ · 5.0★ (23) wp.org #12 1 too high 14 WP Menu Cart 8K+ · 4.8★ (23) wp.org #13 1 too high 15 Snippet Shortcodes 3K+ · 4.7★ (25) wp.org #14 1 too high 16 Food Menu – Restaurant Menu & Online Ordering for WooCommerce 2K+ · 5.0★ (24) wp.org #17 ↑1 1 too low 17 Five Star Restaurant Menu and Food Ordering 5K+ · 4.6★ (107) wp.org #23 6 too low 18 Login Logout Menu 20K+ · 5.0★ (14) wp.org #21 ↓1 3 too low 19 WPB Accordion Menu – Collapsible Vertical Sidebar Responsive Mobile Menu – WooCommerce Category Accordion 10K+ · 4.4★ (54) wp.org #20 ↑4 1 too low 20 Automatically Hierarchic Categories in Menu 2K+ · 4.6★ (13) wp.org #19 ↑4 1 too high 21 Side Menu Lite – Sticky Floating Side Menu 7K+ · 4.0★ (12) wp.org #16 ↑1 5 too high 22 Restaurant Menu and Food Ordering 2K+ · 4.5★ (15) wp.org #15 ↑1 7 too high 23 Groovy Menu Plugin (Free) 4K+ · 3.6★ (25) wp.org #24 1 too low 24 S Simple Membership Form Shortcode 2K+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #22 2 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.