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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “mouse plugin”

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 “mouse plugin”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 9 of the top 20. 2 plugins are 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

Animated Mouse Cursor Trail shows at wp.org #3 but places #18 on merit, a gap of 15 places. Its 100+ installs carry it up the search order; its 3.7★ average from 3 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Page Builder by SiteOrigin places #12 on merit, 4.8★ from 1005 reviews, but shows at wp.org #24. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 WP Rollback – Rollback Plugins and Themes 200K+ · 4.9★ (215) wp.org #1 2 Forminator Forms – Contact Form, Payment Form & Custom Form Builder 600K+ · 4.8★ (2144) wp.org #2 3 WPForms – AI Form Builder for WordPress – Contact Forms, Payment Forms, Survey Form, Quiz & More 5M+ · 4.8★ (14387) wp.org #4 1 too low 4 Gallery by BestWebSoft – Customizable Image and Photo Galleries for WordPress 10K+ · 4.0★ (158) wp.org #5 1 too low 5 Premium Addons for Elementor – AI-Ready Elementor Addons, Widgets & Templates 600K+ · 4.9★ (1680) wp.org #12 ↑1 7 too low 6 B Before After Image Comparison Slider for Elementor 10K+ · 4.4★ (96) wp.org #7 ↑1 1 too low 7 YaMaps for WordPress Plugin 10K+ · 4.8★ (40) wp.org #6 ↑6 1 too high 8 The SEO Framework – Fast, Automated, Effortless. 200K+ · 4.9★ (380) wp.org #10 2 too low 9 Interactive Image Map Plugin – Draw Attention 20K+ · 4.9★ (114) wp.org #8 ↓2 1 too high 10 Rich Showcase for Google Reviews 100K+ · 4.9★ (1623) wp.org #18 8 too low 11 Optin Forms – Simple List Building Plugin for WordPress 2K+ · 4.6★ (72) wp.org #11 ↓1 12 Page Builder by SiteOrigin 400K+ · 4.8★ (1005) wp.org #24 ↓2 12 too low 13 Essential Addons for Elementor – Popular Elementor Templates & Widgets 1M+ · 4.9★ (4132) wp.org #23 ↓5 10 too low 14 P Post Carousel Slider for Elementor 3K+ · 4.5★ (50) wp.org #16 ↓2 2 too low 15 Advanced WordPress Backgrounds 30K+ · 4.8★ (44) wp.org #19 4 too low 16 N News Ticker for Elementor 2K+ · 4.8★ (40) wp.org #17 ↓1 1 too low 17 Block Animations, Motion & Scroll Effects – Ghost Kit 6K+ · 4.6★ (46) wp.org #20 3 too low 18 Animated Mouse Cursor Trail 100+ · 3.7★ (3) wp.org #3 15 too high 19 Accordions – Responsive Accordion & FAQ Plugin for WordPress 1K+ · 4.6★ (10) wp.org #9 10 too high 20 Groovy Menu Plugin (Free) 4K+ · 3.6★ (25) wp.org #21 ↓2 1 too low 21 JAMP Notes (Just Another Memo Plugin) 400+ · 5.0★ (7) wp.org #22 ↓2 1 too low 22 Before After Image 1K+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #15 7 too high 23 Swipe Slider – Make dynamic slider with solid, gradient, or image background 3K+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #13 ↓4 10 too high 24 FaeCursor – Interaction Effects Toolkit 300+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #14 ↓3 10 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.