wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “page loading effect”
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 “page loading effect”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 5 of the top 20.
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 the install base is organic or host-pushed, and its risk of being pulled.
Ranked above its merit
Page Animations And Transitions shows at wp.org #12 but places #23 on merit, a gap of 11 places. Its 1K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 2.8★ average from 32 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
Elementor Website Builder – more than just a page builder 10M+ · 4.5★ (7322)
wp.org #1 2 
Loading Page with Loading Screen 10K+ · 4.6★ (124)
wp.org #2 3 
Essential Addons for Elementor – Popular Elementor Templates & Widgets 1M+ · 4.9★ (4132)
wp.org #5 ↑1 2 too low 4 
WP-Optimize – Cache, Compress images, Minify & Clean database to boost page speed & performance 1M+ · 4.8★ (2617)
wp.org #6 ↓1 2 too low 5 
Speculative Loading 70K+ · 5.0★ (18) thin reviews
wp.org #3 2 too high 6 
Modula Image Gallery – Photo Grid & Video Gallery 100K+ · 4.7★ (616)
wp.org #8 ↑2 2 too low 7 
ElementsKit Elementor Addons – Advanced Widgets & Templates Addons for Elementor 1M+ · 4.9★ (2052)
wp.org #9 ↑2 2 too low 8 
Greenshift – animation and page builder blocks 70K+ · 4.8★ (107)
wp.org #7 1 too high 9 
Weather Effect 4K+ · 4.5★ (30)
wp.org #4 5 too high 10 
Image Hover Effects Ultimate ( Image Gallery, Effects, Lightbox, Comparison & Magnifier ) 10K+ · 4.7★ (250)
wp.org #10 ↓1 11 
Gutenberg Essential Blocks – Page Builder for Gutenberg Blocks & Patterns 100K+ · 4.9★ (216)
wp.org #11 ↑4 12 
CMS Tree Page View – Reorder Pages with a Drag-and-Drop Tree 50K+ · 4.9★ (365)
wp.org #14 ↓6 2 too low 13 
Premium Addons for Elementor – AI-Ready Elementor Addons, Widgets & Templates 600K+ · 4.9★ (1680)
wp.org #17 ↑5 4 too low 14 
W3 Total Cache 900K+ · 4.4★ (5420)
wp.org #16 2 too low 15 
Stackable – Page Builder Gutenberg Blocks 100K+ · 4.9★ (522)
wp.org #18 3 too low 16 
Post and Page Builder by BoldGrid – Visual Drag and Drop Editor 50K+ · 4.7★ (140)
wp.org #15 ↓1 1 too high 17 
Robo Gallery – Photo & Image Slider 40K+ · 4.3★ (406)
wp.org #19 2 too low 18 
Embed Plus for YouTube Gallery, Livestream and Lazy Loading with Facades 100K+ · 4.6★ (572)
wp.org #23 ↑1 5 too low 19 
Royal Addons for Elementor – Addons and Templates Kit for Elementor 600K+ · 4.8★ (612)
wp.org #22 ↓5 3 too low 20 
Addon Elements for Elementor (formerly Elementor Addon Elements) 80K+ · 4.8★ (172)
wp.org #20 21 
Kirki – Freeform Page Builder, Website Builder & Customizer 400K+ · 4.5★ (81)
wp.org #24 ↓5 3 too low 22 
Embed YouTube Block – Fast Loading Videos, Shorts & Playlists 6K+ · 5.0★ (16) thin reviews
wp.org #21 1 too high 23 Page Animations And Transitions 1K+ · 2.8★ (32)
wp.org #12 11 too high 24 
Advanced Marquee Effect for Elementor – Smooth Marquee, News Ticker, Image Box & Icon Box Marquee 2K+ · 4.7★ (6) thin reviews
wp.org #13 11 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.