Plugin Pulse Beta
← Rankings

wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “responsive header”

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 “responsive header”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 11 of the top 20. 2 plugins are 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

Header Footer Builder for Elementor shows at wp.org #5 but places #15 on merit, a gap of 10 places. Its 30K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 5 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

My Sticky Bar – Floating Notification Bar & Sticky Header (formerly myStickymenu) places #11 on merit, 4.9★ from 1199 reviews, but shows at wp.org #21. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Ultimate Addons for Elementor – Widgets, Templates, WooCommerce & Header Footer Builder 2M+ · 4.9★ (2528) wp.org #1 2 Responsive Lightbox & Gallery 100K+ · 4.9★ (2003) wp.org #3 1 too low 3 Sticky Header Effects for Elementor 300K+ · 4.5★ (69) wp.org #2 1 too high 4 Responsive Menu – Mobile Menu & Hamburger Menu Builder 70K+ · 4.5★ (574) wp.org #4 5 Sticky Menu & Sticky Header 90K+ · 4.7★ (763) wp.org #7 ↓1 2 too low 6 Ultimate Responsive Image Slider 30K+ · 4.5★ (248) wp.org #6 ↑2 7 TablePress – Tables in WordPress made easy 600K+ · 5.0★ (4625) wp.org #12 ↓1 5 too low 8 ElementsKit Elementor Addons – Advanced Widgets & Templates Addons for Elementor 1M+ · 4.9★ (2051) wp.org #10 ↓1 2 too low 9 Make Tables Responsive 6K+ · 5.0★ (34) wp.org #8 ↓1 1 too high 10 Widgets for Google Reviews 1M+ · 4.9★ (2667) wp.org #16 6 too low 11 My Sticky Bar – Floating Notification Bar & Sticky Header (formerly myStickymenu) 100K+ · 4.9★ (1199) wp.org #21 ↓2 10 too low 12 Essential Addons for Elementor – Popular Elementor Templates & Widgets 1M+ · 4.9★ (4132) wp.org #15 ↓1 3 too low 13 WP Mobile Menu – The Mobile-Friendly Responsive Menu 70K+ · 4.7★ (256) wp.org #17 ↓2 4 too low 14 WP Header Images 4K+ · 4.4★ (35) wp.org #9 5 too high 15 Header Footer Builder for Elementor 30K+ · 5.0★ (5) wp.org #5 10 too high 16 Tabby Responsive Tabs 10K+ · 4.9★ (144) wp.org #23 ↓3 7 too low 17 Elementor Website Builder – more than just a page builder 10M+ · 4.5★ (7322) wp.org #22 5 too low 18 Responsive Starter Templates – Elementor Templates & Starter Sites 10K+ · 4.5★ (39) wp.org #13 ↓1 5 too high 19 Responsive Slider Gallery – Responsive Image Photo Slider 2K+ · 4.5★ (13) wp.org #11 ↓1 8 too high 20 Simple YouTube Responsive 3K+ · 5.0★ (12) wp.org #18 ↓2 2 too high 21 Responsive Addons for Elementor – Free Elementor Addons, Kits and Elementor Templates 3K+ · 5.0★ (6) wp.org #14 ↓1 7 too high 22 A Add Custom Header Images 400+ · 4.7★ (3) wp.org #19 ↓2 3 too high 23 HTTP Security Header 1K+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #20 ↓2 3 too high 24 Dynamic Header & Navigation for Block Themes 200+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #24 ↓3

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.