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

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 “photoswipe”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 7 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

WooSwipe WooCommerce Gallery shows at wp.org #5 but places #9 on merit, a gap of 4 places. Its 3K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 4.5★ average from 39 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Justified Gallery places #7 on merit, 4.9★ from 206 reviews, but shows at wp.org #11. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Lightbox with PhotoSwipe 20K+ · 4.9★ (115) wp.org #1 2 Meow Lightbox 10K+ · 4.9★ (186) wp.org #3 1 too low 3 Photoswipe Masonry Gallery 6K+ · 4.5★ (46) wp.org #2 1 too high 4 Photonic Gallery & Lightbox for Flickr, SmugMug & Others 10K+ · 4.8★ (193) wp.org #4 5 Responsive Lightbox & Gallery 100K+ · 4.9★ (2002) wp.org #6 1 too low 6 Gallery by Visual Portfolio 60K+ · 4.8★ (338) wp.org #9 3 too low 7 Justified Gallery 8K+ · 4.9★ (206) wp.org #11 4 too low 8 Gallery – Photo Albums Plugin 2K+ · 3.8★ (277) wp.org #10 2 too low 9 WooSwipe WooCommerce Gallery 3K+ · 4.5★ (39) wp.org #5 4 too high 10 Image Gallery 3K+ · 4.4★ (32) wp.org #7 3 too high 11 WP Hotelier 2K+ · 4.7★ (23) wp.org #8 3 too high 12 Magic Product Video for WooCommerce 30+ · 5.0★ (6) wp.org #13 1 too low 13 Rexpansive Builder 10+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #16 3 too low 14 Grafiduo AI Content Flag — · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #15 1 too low 15 ImmoWP Gestion Immobiliere 40+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #12 3 too high 16 J JTZL's SwipeComic 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #14 2 too high 17 F FiveStar Product Image Gallery Control for WooCommerce — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #17 18 Arts Immersive Lightbox for Elementor — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #18 19 J jon's attribute image galleries for woocommerce — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #19 ↑2 20 Global AI Gallery — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #20 ↓1 21 H HeartApproval — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #22 1 too low 22 CartTrigger – BAG — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #23 1 too low 23 T th23 Gallery 20+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #24 1 too low 24 AUMP — Advanced Universal Modern Portfolio & Gallery — · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #21 ↓1 3 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.