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← Rankings

wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “open tabs”

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 “open tabs”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 12 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

Tabs Block – Responsive Gutenberg Tabs for Block Editor shows at wp.org #11 but places #24 on merit, a gap of 13 places. Its 700+ 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

Admin and Site Enhancements (ASE) places #7 on merit, 5.0★ from 423 reviews, but shows at wp.org #21. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Social Preview and Open Graph Tags 50K+ · 4.6★ (122) wp.org #1 2 Open User Map – Interactive Leaflet Maps 10K+ · 5.0★ (70) wp.org #2 3 We’re Open! 5K+ · 5.0★ (45) wp.org #3 4 WooCommerce 7M+ · 4.5★ (4833) wp.org #4 5 External Links in New Window / New Tab 30K+ · 4.5★ (77) wp.org #6 1 too low 6 Tabby Responsive Tabs 10K+ · 4.9★ (144) wp.org #13 7 too low 7 Admin and Site Enhancements (ASE) 200K+ · 5.0★ (423) wp.org #21 14 too low 8 Easy Tabs Block – Smart, Lightweight & Responsive Tabs for the Block Editor 1K+ · 5.0★ (5) wp.org #5 3 too high 9 Spectra Legacy – Gutenberg Blocks 1M+ · 4.7★ (1872) wp.org #23 14 too low 10 SureRank SEO – Meta Tags, Social Preview, XML Sitemap, Schema & Open Graph 300K+ · 4.8★ (51) wp.org #17 7 too low 11 Elementor Website Builder – more than just a page builder 10M+ · 4.5★ (7323) wp.org #24 13 too low 12 External Product New Tab for WooCommerce 3K+ · 4.8★ (35) wp.org #18 6 too low 13 Plethora Tabs + Accordions 2K+ · 4.9★ (8) wp.org #9 4 too high 14 Simple Side Tab 10K+ · 4.8★ (22) wp.org #14 15 Responsive Tabs — Horizontal, Vertical & Accordion Tabs for WordPress 2K+ · 5.0★ (5) wp.org #10 5 too high 16 Open Close Store for WooCommerce – Business Hours & Order Scheduling 600+ · 3.4★ (41) wp.org #22 6 too low 17 Advanced Tabs Block 1K+ · 3.3★ (15) wp.org #12 5 too high 18 Open Graphite 3K+ · 3.3★ (8) wp.org #8 10 too high 19 Tab Ultimate 1K+ · 4.0★ (4) wp.org #7 12 too high 20 Additional Custom Product Tabs for WooCommerce 400+ · 5.0★ (5) wp.org #16 4 too high 21 Open Search Document 200+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #19 2 too high 22 Open Accessibility 50+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #20 2 too high 23 Tabs Block 400+ · 3.5★ (4) wp.org #15 8 too high 24 Tabs Block – Responsive Gutenberg Tabs for Block Editor 700+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #11 13 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.