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

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 preloader”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 9 of the top 20. 3 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

VenoBox – Lightweight & Responsive Lightbox Plugin shows at wp.org #8 but places #23 on merit, a gap of 15 places. Its 200+ 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

Firelight Lightbox places #11 on merit, 4.8★ from 361 reviews, but shows at wp.org #24. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Safelayout Cute Preloader – CSS3 WordPress Preloader 10K+ · 5.0★ (84) wp.org #1 2 Preloader 10K+ · 4.1★ (41) wp.org #2 3 YMC Filter 4K+ · 4.8★ (34) wp.org #4 1 too low 4 Beautiful Cookie Consent Banner 40K+ · 4.5★ (95) wp.org #6 ↑1 2 too low 5 Logo Slider WP – Responsive Logo Carousel, Logo Gallery & Logo Showcase 10K+ · 4.5★ (61) wp.org #5 ↑1 6 Logo Carousel – Responsive Logo Slider, Logo Showcase, and Clients Logo Gallery 20K+ · 4.7★ (162) wp.org #9 ↓6 3 too low 7 Coming Soon & Maintenance Mode Page & Under Construction 10K+ · 4.8★ (317) wp.org #14 7 too low 8 LoftLoader 70K+ · 4.5★ (33) wp.org #7 ↑1 1 too high 9 Video Popup – Video Lightbox for YouTube, Vimeo & MP4 10K+ · 4.5★ (43) wp.org #11 2 too low 10 Live Composer – Free WordPress Website Builder 10K+ · 4.4★ (212) wp.org #12 2 too low 11 Firelight Lightbox 200K+ · 4.8★ (361) wp.org #24 13 too low 12 SiteOrigin Widgets Bundle 400K+ · 4.9★ (134) wp.org #19 ↑1 7 too low 13 Responsive Team Members Showcase, Team Grid, Team Slider, and Staff List – Smart Team (formerly WP Team) 5K+ · 4.7★ (92) wp.org #20 ↑2 7 too low 14 WP Preloader 100+ · 4.0★ (4) wp.org #3 ↑2 11 too high 15 Sina Extension for Elementor 40K+ · 4.9★ (35) wp.org #13 2 too high 16 Additional Variation Images Gallery for WooCommerce 30K+ · 4.6★ (162) wp.org #21 ↓4 5 too low 17 Filter Gallery 3K+ · 4.6★ (22) wp.org #18 ↑3 1 too low 18 WP Smart Preloader 5K+ · 4.4★ (25) wp.org #16 2 too high 19 Plover Kit – Blocks, Patterns, Responsive Layout and Gutenberg Editor Enhancements 3K+ · 4.2★ (5) wp.org #10 9 too high 20 Archive Page 700+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #15 5 too high 21 UiCore Animate – Free Animations, Transitions, and Interactions Addon for Elementor & Gutenberg blocks 40K+ · 3.2★ (10) wp.org #23 2 too low 22 WP Counter Up – Animated Number Counter & Milestone Showcase 1K+ · 4.0★ (5) wp.org #17 ↑2 5 too high 23 VenoBox – Lightweight & Responsive Lightbox Plugin 200+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #8 ↑1 15 too high 24 Advanced Preloader 20+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #22 ↓4 2 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.