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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “simple colorbox”

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 “simple colorbox”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 10 of the top 20. 7 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

Zendesk Support for WordPress shows at wp.org #12 but places #24 on merit, a gap of 12 places. Its 1K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 2.0★ average from 7 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Vimeography: Vimeo Video Gallery WordPress Plugin places #6 on merit, 4.5★ from 122 reviews, but shows at wp.org #10. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 WP Colorbox 5K+ · 4.3★ (23) wp.org #1 2 Gallery – Photo Albums Plugin 2K+ · 3.8★ (277) wp.org #3 1 too low 3 Dynamic Product Gallery for WooCommerce 1K+ · 3.1★ (37) wp.org #2 1 too high 4 BackUpWordPress 80K+ · 4.7★ (1373) wp.org #7 ↑1 3 too low 5 YITH WooCommerce Compare 100K+ · 4.1★ (38) wp.org #4 1 too high 6 Vimeography: Vimeo Video Gallery WordPress Plugin 5K+ · 4.5★ (122) wp.org #10 4 too low 7 WCFM Membership – WooCommerce Memberships for Multivendor Marketplace 10K+ · 4.0★ (25) wp.org #5 2 too high 8 MetaSlider Gallery – Image Gallery, Lightbox Galleries, Video Galleries 10K+ · 4.4★ (9) wp.org #8 ↓1 9 C Cleaner Gallery 2K+ · 4.8★ (23) wp.org #16 7 too low 10 MZ Mindbody API 100+ · 5.0★ (10) wp.org #11 1 too low 11 Mihdan: Ajax Edit Comments 300+ · 4.4★ (18) wp.org #15 4 too low 12 Ibtana – Ecommerce Product Addons 5K+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #6 6 too high 13 Diverse Solutions IDX Real Estate Listings & MLS Search 1K+ · 3.2★ (66) wp.org #13 14 Simple Colorbox 1K+ · 4.8★ (12) wp.org #17 3 too low 15 Products Quick View for WooCommerce 90+ · 2.8★ (17) wp.org #9 6 too high 16 BP Favorite Plus 10+ · 4.2★ (6) wp.org #20 4 too low 17 A AW Simple Sorter 10+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #18 1 too low 18 Admail Signup Forms — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #14 4 too high 19 S Scorpion PPF Product Extension — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #19 20 Q Quotepro Office Widget — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #22 ↑1 2 too low 21 C Conditional Simple Colorbox — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #24 3 too low 22 J JQuery Colorbox Zoom 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #23 ↑1 1 too low 23 S Simple Galleria for WordPress 90+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #21 ↑1 2 too high 24 Zendesk Support for WordPress 1K+ · 2.0★ (7) wp.org #12 12 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.