wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “responsive iframe”
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 iframe”, we and wp.org disagree on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 12 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
iFrame Block shows at wp.org #9 but places #22 on merit, a gap of 13 places. Its 800+ 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
Smash Balloon Social Photo Feed – Easy Social Feeds Plugin places #11 on merit, 4.9★ from 4358 reviews, but shows at wp.org #22. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.
Responsive Lightbox & Gallery 100K+ · 4.9★ (2003)
wp.org #2 1 too low 2 
Advanced iFrame 40K+ · 4.4★ (54)
wp.org #1 1 too high 3 
LiteSpeed Cache 7M+ · 4.8★ (2778)
wp.org #4 1 too low 4 
Advanced Responsive Video Embedder for Rumble, Odysee, YouTube, Vimeo, Kick … 20K+ · 4.2★ (169)
wp.org #5 1 too low 5 
LazyLoad Plugin – Lazy Load Images, Videos, and Iframes 100K+ · 4.2★ (139)
wp.org #6 1 too low 6 
Beautiful Cookie Consent Banner 40K+ · 4.5★ (95)
wp.org #11 5 too low 7 
Widgets for Google Reviews 1M+ · 4.9★ (2667)
wp.org #17 10 too low 8 
Custom iFrame – Embed PDFs, Videos, and External Content in WordPress (Elementor & Gutenberg) 4K+ · 5.0★ (5) thin reviews
wp.org #3 5 too high 9 
Responsive Lightbox 10K+ · 4.6★ (42)
wp.org #10 1 too low 10 
WPFront Scroll Top 200K+ · 4.9★ (142)
wp.org #16 6 too low 11 Smash Balloon Social Photo Feed – Easy Social Feeds Plugin 1M+ · 4.9★ (4358)
wp.org #22 11 too low 12 
Responsive Tabs 4K+ · 4.2★ (41)
wp.org #8 4 too high 13 
Smart Slider 3 800K+ · 4.9★ (1125)
wp.org #20 7 too low 14 
Max Mega Menu 300K+ · 4.8★ (882)
wp.org #23 9 too low 15 
Simple YouTube Responsive 3K+ · 5.0★ (12) thin reviews
wp.org #7 8 too high 16 
Popup Maker – Responsive popup, Exit Intent Pop up, Email Optins, Autoresponder & More 7K+ · 4.5★ (144)
wp.org #24 8 too low 17 
WP Video Popup – WordPress Video Lightbox for YouTube, Rumble & Vimeo 9K+ · 4.1★ (43)
wp.org #18 1 too low 18 
Accordions – Responsive Accordion & FAQ Plugin for WordPress 1K+ · 4.6★ (10) thin reviews
wp.org #12 6 too high 19 
Photo Gallery by Ays – Responsive Image Gallery 1K+ · 4.8★ (19) thin reviews
wp.org #21 2 too low 20 
Smart LazyLoad – Lazy Load Images, Videos and Iframes 400+ · 5.0★ (5) thin reviews
wp.org #13 7 too high 21 
TableMaster for Elementor – Responsive Data Tables & Comparison Tables 400+ · 5.0★ (4) thin reviews
wp.org #19 2 too high 22 iFrame Block 800+ · 5.0★ (1) thin reviews
wp.org #9 13 too high 23 
ICWT Responsive Device Preview 70+ · 5.0★ (1) thin reviews
wp.org #14 9 too high 24 
VenoBox – Lightweight & Responsive Lightbox Plugin 200+ · 5.0★ (1) thin reviews
wp.org #15 9 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.