wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “search block”
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 “search block”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 9 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
SVG Block shows at wp.org #16 but places #22 on merit, a gap of 6 places. Its 4K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 14 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
Site Kit by Google – Analytics, Search Console, AdSense, Speed 5M+ · 4.2★ (1012)
wp.org #1 2 
Search Exclude 50K+ · 4.8★ (218)
wp.org #2 3 
Yoast SEO – Advanced SEO with real-time guidance and built-in AI 10M+ · 4.8★ (27820)
wp.org #4 1 too low 4 
Relevanssi – A Better Search 100K+ · 4.8★ (406)
wp.org #3 1 too high 5 
Ajax Search Lite – Live Search & Filter 70K+ · 4.8★ (266)
wp.org #5 6 
FiboSearch – Ajax Search for WooCommerce 100K+ · 4.9★ (1815)
wp.org #9 3 too low 7 
Kadence Blocks — Page Builder Toolkit for Gutenberg Editor 600K+ · 4.8★ (333)
wp.org #8 1 too low 8 
Advanced Woo Search – Product Search for WooCommerce 60K+ · 4.8★ (248)
wp.org #11 3 too low 9 
IP Location Block 10K+ · 4.5★ (35)
wp.org #6 3 too high 10 
Block Visibility — Conditional Visibility Control for the Block Editor 40K+ · 4.9★ (108)
wp.org #10 11 
The Icon Block 40K+ · 5.0★ (29)
wp.org #7 4 too high 12 
Otter Blocks – Gutenberg Blocks, Page Builder for Gutenberg Editor & FSE 300K+ · 4.7★ (251)
wp.org #12 13 
TablePress – Tables in WordPress made easy 600K+ · 5.0★ (4625)
wp.org #23 10 too low 14 
Search & Filter 40K+ · 4.5★ (175)
wp.org #14 15 
WooCommerce 7M+ · 4.5★ (4833)
wp.org #19 4 too low 16 
All in One SEO – AI SEO Plugin to Boost SEO Rankings & Traffic (Schema, Local SEO, Sitemap & SEO Insights) 2M+ · 4.7★ (5231)
wp.org #21 5 too low 17 
Carousel Slider Block for Gutenberg 50K+ · 4.8★ (59)
wp.org #13 4 too high 18 
Lightbox for Gallery & Image Block 20K+ · 5.0★ (88)
wp.org #18 19 
SearchWP Live Ajax Search 40K+ · 4.7★ (36)
wp.org #15 4 too high 20 
Nexter Blocks – Gutenberg Blocks, Page Builder & AI Website Builder 9K+ · 4.8★ (90)
wp.org #22 2 too low 21 
Search Analytics for WP – Site Search Tracking 3K+ · 5.0★ (30)
wp.org #20 1 too high 22 SVG Block 4K+ · 5.0★ (14) thin reviews
wp.org #16 6 too high 23 
Jetpack Search 5K+ · 4.5★ (10) thin reviews
wp.org #17 6 too high 24 
Timeline Block For Gutenberg 9K+ · 4.4★ (11) thin reviews
wp.org #24 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.