wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “page sections”
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 sections”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 6 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
Bold Page Builder shows at wp.org #13 but places #21 on merit, a gap of 8 places. Its 40K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 3.6★ average from 66 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
Buried gem
Folders – Unlimited Folders to Organize Media Library Folder, Pages, Posts, File Manager places #11 on merit, 5.0★ from 1526 reviews, but shows at wp.org #15. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.
Elementor Website Builder – more than just a page builder 10M+ · 4.5★ (7322)
wp.org #1 2 
Super Page Cache – Cloudflare Cache, Page Speed & Core Web Vitals 70K+ · 4.8★ (518)
wp.org #2 3 
Duplicate Page 3M+ · 4.8★ (467)
wp.org #3 4 
Kadence Blocks — Page Builder Toolkit for Gutenberg Editor 600K+ · 4.8★ (333)
wp.org #4 ↑1 5 
Page scroll to id 100K+ · 4.9★ (225)
wp.org #5 ↓1 6 
PPWP – Password Protect Pages 30K+ · 4.7★ (271)
wp.org #7 1 too low 7 
Simple Page Ordering 100K+ · 4.7★ (131)
wp.org #6 1 too high 8 
Page Builder by SiteOrigin 400K+ · 4.8★ (1005)
wp.org #10 2 too low 9 
Website Builder by SeedProd — Theme Builder, Landing Page Builder, Coming Soon Page, Maintenance Mode 600K+ · 4.9★ (4699)
wp.org #12 ↑1 3 too low 10 P Page Links To 100K+ · 4.9★ (157)
wp.org #8 2 too high 11 Folders – Unlimited Folders to Organize Media Library Folder, Pages, Posts, File Manager 90K+ · 5.0★ (1526)
wp.org #15 ↓3 4 too low 12 
Greenshift – animation and page builder blocks 70K+ · 4.8★ (107)
wp.org #9 3 too high 13 
Loading Page with Loading Screen 10K+ · 4.6★ (124)
wp.org #11 2 too high 14 
Post and Page Builder by BoldGrid – Visual Drag and Drop Editor 50K+ · 4.7★ (140)
wp.org #14 ↑1 15 
WP-Optimize – Cache, Compress images, Minify & Clean database to boost page speed & performance 1M+ · 4.8★ (2617)
wp.org #19 4 too low 16 
Otter Blocks – Gutenberg Blocks, Page Builder for Gutenberg Editor & FSE 300K+ · 4.7★ (251)
wp.org #18 2 too low 17 
Gutenberg Essential Blocks – Page Builder for Gutenberg Blocks & Patterns 100K+ · 4.9★ (216)
wp.org #24 7 too low 18 
Smart Archive Page Remove 6K+ · 4.9★ (59)
wp.org #16 2 too high 19 
Table of Contents Plus – Automatic Table of Contents for Posts & Pages 200K+ · 4.5★ (187)
wp.org #20 ↑2 1 too low 20 
Nested Pages 90K+ · 4.7★ (126)
wp.org #23 ↓3 3 too low 21 Bold Page Builder 40K+ · 3.6★ (66)
wp.org #13 ↑1 8 too high 22 
Shop Page WP 2K+ · 5.0★ (22) thin reviews
wp.org #21 1 too high 23 O One Page Express Companion 10K+ · 4.7★ (11) thin reviews
wp.org #17 6 too high 24 
Print Page Block – make any page printable in one click 1K+ · 4.9★ (7) thin reviews
wp.org #22 ↑1 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.