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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “pixel art”

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 “pixel art”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 13 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

Arts Horizontal Scroll for Elementor shows at wp.org #4 but places #15 on merit, a gap of 11 places. Its 80+ 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

Adaptive Images for WordPress places #11 on merit, 4.7★ from 56 reviews, but shows at wp.org #20. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Perfect Images: Regenerate Thumbnails, Image Sizes, WebP & AVIF 60K+ · 4.8★ (279) wp.org #1 2 EU Withdrawal and Legal Guarantee Compliance 1K+ · 5.0★ (17) wp.org #2 3 Cookie Choices (for EU Cookie Law & GDPR) 9K+ · 4.5★ (35) wp.org #3 4 WPVR – 360 Panorama viewer and Virtual Tour Builder for WordPress 10K+ · 4.7★ (133) wp.org #8 ↓5 4 too low 5 WP Maps – Google Maps, OpenStreetMap, Mapbox, Store Locator with Search, Filters & Listings 60K+ · 4.3★ (122) wp.org #7 ↓2 2 too low 6 FAZ Cookie Manager 3K+ · 5.0★ (30) wp.org #9 ↓5 3 too low 7 The Events Calendar Shortcode & Block 10K+ · 4.7★ (101) wp.org #15 ↓3 8 too low 8 Polski for WooCommerce 60+ · 4.8★ (10) wp.org #5 3 too high 9 iPanorama 360 – Advanced Virtual Tour Builder 4K+ · 4.5★ (31) wp.org #13 ↓2 4 too low 10 UpdraftCentral Dashboard 5K+ · 4.5★ (22) wp.org #12 ↓4 2 too low 11 Adaptive Images for WordPress 3K+ · 4.7★ (56) wp.org #20 ↓4 9 too low 12 Embeds for YouTube 9K+ · 4.2★ (24) wp.org #19 ↓4 7 too low 13 AI Featured Image 100+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #6 7 too high 14 Blockenberg — 645 Advanced Gutenberg Blocks, 683 Templates and AI Agent for WordPress Block Editor 1K+ · 4.6★ (5) wp.org #10 ↓1 4 too high 15 Arts Horizontal Scroll for Elementor 80+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #4 ↓2 11 too high 16 Musician’s Pack for Elementor – Music Website Widgets & Templates 400+ · 4.3★ (6) wp.org #18 ↓4 2 too low 17 Flinkform – GDPR Contact Form Builder for the Block Editor 40+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #16 ↑1 1 too high 18 AR for WooCommerce – Augmented Reality & 3D Product Viewer for Art (ArtInAR) — · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #14 ↓4 4 too high 19 ConsentOwl — Cookie Consent & Tracker Blocker 300+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #11 ↓4 8 too high 20 Onyx Dark Mode Switcher 300+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #17 ↓4 3 too high 21 Sonic Pixel Product Spin for WooCommerce — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #22 ↓2 1 too low 22 Keitai Emoji — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #23 ↓4 1 too low 23 Simple Podcasting 100+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #24 ↓3 1 too low 24 Consentinel Cookie Consent 10+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #21 ↓3 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.