wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “shape builder”
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 “shape builder”, 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
Shape Dividers Plus for Elementor shows at wp.org #2 but places #18 on merit, a gap of 16 places. Its 2K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 2 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
Buried gem
Stackable – Page Builder Gutenberg Blocks places #12 on merit, 4.9★ from 522 reviews, but shows at wp.org #19. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.
Elementor Website Builder – more than just a page builder 10M+ · 4.5★ (7322)
wp.org #1 2 
Depicter — Popup & Slider Builder 70K+ · 4.6★ (236)
wp.org #4 ↑1 2 too low 3 
Greenshift – animation and page builder blocks 70K+ · 4.8★ (107)
wp.org #5 ↓1 2 too low 4 
ElementsKit Elementor Addons – Advanced Widgets & Templates Addons for Elementor 1M+ · 4.9★ (2051)
wp.org #8 4 too low 5 
Post and Page Builder by BoldGrid – Visual Drag and Drop Editor 50K+ · 4.7★ (140)
wp.org #7 2 too low 6 
Yoast SEO – Advanced SEO with real-time guidance and built-in AI 10M+ · 4.8★ (27821)
wp.org #12 ↓1 6 too low 7 
Live Composer – Free WordPress Website Builder 10K+ · 4.4★ (212)
wp.org #10 ↓1 3 too low 8 
Gutenberg Essential Blocks – Page Builder for Gutenberg Blocks & Patterns 100K+ · 4.9★ (216)
wp.org #13 5 too low 9 
Brave – Create Popup, Optins, Lead Generation, Survey, Sticky Elements & Interactive Content 20K+ · 4.8★ (209)
wp.org #14 ↑6 5 too low 10 
Spectra Blocks – AI Website Builder for the Block Editor 60K+ · 4.6★ (53)
wp.org #9 ↓3 1 too high 11 
Nexter Blocks – Gutenberg Blocks, Page Builder & AI Website Builder 9K+ · 4.8★ (90)
wp.org #11 12 Stackable – Page Builder Gutenberg Blocks 100K+ · 4.9★ (522)
wp.org #19 ↓2 7 too low 13 
FluentSMTP – WP Mail SMTP Plugin with Amazon SES, SendGrid, Mailgun, Postmark, Cloudflare, toSend, Gmail and Any SMTP 700K+ · 4.8★ (410)
wp.org #16 ↓2 3 too low 14 
Essential Addons for Elementor – Popular Elementor Templates & Widgets 1M+ · 4.9★ (4132)
wp.org #22 ↓3 8 too low 15 
Supreme Modules Lite – Divi Theme, Extra Theme and Divi Builder 100K+ · 4.8★ (109)
wp.org #18 ↓6 3 too low 16 
Master Addons for Elementor – Elementor Addons, Widgets, Mega Menu Builder, Popup Builder, Widget Builder & Template Kits 30K+ · 4.5★ (212)
wp.org #20 ↓2 4 too low 17 
Custom Shape Dividers create dividers in a easy way 300+ · 4.7★ (3) thin reviews
wp.org #3 14 too high 18 Shape Dividers Plus for Elementor 2K+ · 5.0★ (2) thin reviews
wp.org #2 16 too high 19 
aBlocks – Gutenberg Blocks, User Dashboard Builder, Popup Builder, Form Builder & Animation Builder 2K+ · 5.0★ (26)
wp.org #17 ↓1 2 too high 20 
Kubio AI Page Builder 80K+ · 4.4★ (79)
wp.org #23 3 too low 21 
Page Builder Gutenberg Blocks – CoBlocks 300K+ · 4.2★ (109)
wp.org #24 3 too low 22 
BlockStrap Page Builder – Bootstrap Blocks 2K+ · 4.5★ (4) thin reviews
wp.org #6 ↑4 16 too high 23 
SurveyX Builder – Survey, Poll, Quiz & Feedback Form 2K+ · 5.0★ (3) thin reviews
wp.org #15 8 too high 24 
Classic Addons – WPBakery Page Builder 3K+ · 5.0★ (1) thin reviews
wp.org #21 ↑1 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.