wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “parent menu”
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 “parent menu”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 9 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
No Category Parents shows at wp.org #12 but places #22 on merit, a gap of 10 places. Its 6K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 3 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
Buried gem
Admin and Site Enhancements (ASE) places #10 on merit, 5.0★ from 423 reviews, but shows at wp.org #17. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.
Admin Menu Editor 300K+ · 4.6★ (312)
wp.org #1 2 
Max Mega Menu 300K+ · 4.8★ (882)
wp.org #2 3 
Nav Menu Roles 70K+ · 4.9★ (219)
wp.org #3 4 
Responsive Menu – Mobile Menu & Hamburger Menu Builder 70K+ · 4.5★ (576)
wp.org #4 5 
Sticky Menu & Sticky Header 90K+ · 4.7★ (763)
wp.org #5 6 
WP Mobile Menu – The Mobile-Friendly Responsive Menu 70K+ · 4.7★ (256)
wp.org #6 7 
WP Responsive Menu 30K+ · 4.3★ (100)
wp.org #7 8 
Elementor Website Builder – more than just a page builder 10M+ · 4.5★ (7322)
wp.org #13 5 too low 9 
Iks Menu – WordPress Category Accordion Menu & FAQs 10K+ · 5.0★ (27)
wp.org #8 1 too high 10 Admin and Site Enhancements (ASE) 200K+ · 5.0★ (423)
wp.org #17 ↑1 7 too low 11 
Admin Menu Tree Page View 10K+ · 4.6★ (48)
wp.org #10 1 too high 12 
Advanced Sidebar Menu 10K+ · 4.5★ (37)
wp.org #9 3 too high 13 
QuadMenu – Mega Menu 10K+ · 4.5★ (270)
wp.org #18 ↓1 5 too low 14 
WPB Accordion Menu – Collapsible Vertical Sidebar Responsive Mobile Menu – WooCommerce Category Accordion 10K+ · 4.4★ (54)
wp.org #14 15 
SlickNav Mobile Menu 3K+ · 4.8★ (24) thin reviews
wp.org #11 4 too high 16 
Category Posts in Custom Menu 2K+ · 4.8★ (43)
wp.org #19 3 too low 17 
Category Order and Taxonomy Terms Order 500K+ · 4.5★ (162)
wp.org #24 7 too low 18 
Navigation menu as Dropdown Widget 2K+ · 5.0★ (10) thin reviews
wp.org #15 3 too high 19 
Groovy Menu Plugin (Free) 4K+ · 3.6★ (25)
wp.org #16 3 too high 20 
Bulk menu creator 1K+ · 5.0★ (9) thin reviews
wp.org #20 21 
Responsive Vertical Icon Menu 700+ · 5.0★ (7) thin reviews
wp.org #21 22 No Category Parents 6K+ · 5.0★ (3) thin reviews
wp.org #12 10 too high 23 
Menu Backup & Restore + Import/Export 500+ · 5.0★ (3) thin reviews
wp.org #22 1 too high 24 C Custom Post Type Parents 900+ · 4.0★ (6) thin reviews
wp.org #23 ↑1 1 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.