wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “nivo”

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 “nivo”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 12 of the top 20. 4 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

JPEGcrypto shows at wp.org #14 but places #22 on merit, a gap of 8 places. Its 20+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 1 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Seraphinite Accelerator places #5 on merit, 4.8★ from 476 reviews, but shows at wp.org #12. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin signals wp.org

Responsive Lightbox & Gallery 100K+ · 4.9★ (2003) wp.org #1 2

Options for Twenty Seventeen 8K+ · 4.8★ (57) wp.org #3 1 too low 3

Lightbox slider – Responsive Lightbox Gallery 3K+ · 4.7★ (24) thin reviews wp.org #2 1 too high 4

Responsive Lightbox 10K+ · 4.6★ (42) wp.org #7 3 too low 5

Seraphinite Accelerator 50K+ · 4.8★ (476) not PHP-current wp.org #12 ↑1 7 too low 6

WP Editor 20K+ · 4.5★ (95) wp.org #11 5 too low 7

MaxGalleria 1K+ · 4.4★ (65) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #8 1 too low 8

InPost Gallery 700+ · 4.0★ (18) thin reviews wp.org #13 ↓1 5 too low 9

FA Lite – WP responsive slider plugin 500+ · 3.7★ (13) closure risk thin reviewsstale but ranked wp.org #9 10

oik 2K+ · 3.7★ (3) thin reviews wp.org #4 6 too high 11

NivoSearch – Ajax Search for WooCommerce 60+ · 5.0★ (2) thin reviews wp.org #5 ↑1 6 too high 12

Portfolio Designer – WordPress Portfolio Plugin (Image/Video/Slider Gallery) 100+ · 3.5★ (10) closure risk thin reviewsstale but ranked wp.org #10 2 too high 13

oik-nivo-slider 100+ · 2.4★ (5) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews wp.org #6 ↓1 7 too high 14 W WP Sequence Slider 20+ · 3.1★ (15) throws errorsnot PHP-currentclosure risk thin reviews wp.org #18 4 too low 15

MaxiCharts Colors Add-on 10+ · 4.5★ (2) closure risk thin reviews wp.org #15 16 N NextGen NivoSlider 200+ · 3.5★ (8) throws errorsnot PHP-currentclosure risk thin reviews wp.org #20 4 too low 17 R Responsive Slides 20+ · 4.0★ (4) closure risk thin reviews wp.org #23 6 too low 18 C Client Scroller Widget 60+ · 4.0★ (4) throws errorsnot PHP-currentclosure risk thin reviews wp.org #19 1 too low 19

BimBeau Privacy Analytics — · 5.0★ (1) thin reviews wp.org #16 3 too high 20 V vdSlider — · 0.0★ (0) closure risk thin reviews wp.org #21 1 too low 21 N Nivo Slider Widget 10+ · 0.0★ (0) closure risk thin reviews wp.org #22 1 too low 22

JPEGcrypto 20+ · 5.0★ (1) throws errorsnot PHP-currentclosure risk thin reviews wp.org #14 8 too high 23

Nivo Slider Simplified 40+ · 0.0★ (0) throws errorsnot PHP-currentclosure risk thin reviews wp.org #17 6 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.