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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “split menu”

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 “split menu”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 11 of the top 20. 4 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

WC Backorder Split shows at wp.org #7 but places #21 on merit, a gap of 14 places. Its 50+ installs carry it up the search order; its 3.7★ average from 3 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

404 to 301 – Redirect Manager, 301 Redirection, 404 Error Logs & 404 Monitoring places #12 on merit, 4.7★ from 321 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.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Max Mega Menu 300K+ · 4.8★ (882) wp.org #1 2 Sticky Menu & Sticky Header 90K+ · 4.7★ (763) wp.org #2 3 Essential Addons for Elementor – Popular Elementor Templates & Widgets 1M+ · 4.9★ (4132) wp.org #5 2 too low 4 Unlimited Elements for Elementor 300K+ · 4.8★ (525) wp.org #8 ↑2 4 too low 5 Split Test For Elementor 3K+ · 4.4★ (24) wp.org #3 2 too high 6 Five Star Restaurant Menu and Food Ordering 5K+ · 4.6★ (107) wp.org #4 2 too high 7 WP Table Builder – Drag & Drop Table Builder 50K+ · 4.8★ (681) wp.org #12 5 too low 8 Master Addons for Elementor – Elementor Addons, Widgets, Mega Menu Builder, Popup Builder, Widget Builder & Template Kits 30K+ · 4.5★ (212) wp.org #9 1 too low 9 Category Posts in Custom Menu 2K+ · 4.8★ (43) wp.org #6 3 too high 10 PrettyLinks – Affiliate Link Management, URL Shortener, Link Cloaking, Tracking & Branded Short Links 200K+ · 4.8★ (1322) wp.org #14 4 too low 11 Duplicator – Backups & Migration Plugin – Cloud Backups, Scheduled Backups, & More 1M+ · 4.9★ (4940) wp.org #10 ↑1 1 too high 12 404 to 301 – Redirect Manager, 301 Redirection, 404 Error Logs & 404 Monitoring 100K+ · 4.7★ (321) wp.org #19 ↓1 7 too low 13 Advanced Ads – Ad Manager & AdSense 90K+ · 4.9★ (1463) wp.org #22 9 too low 14 Kadence Blocks — Page Builder Toolkit for Gutenberg Editor 600K+ · 4.8★ (333) wp.org #17 ↑4 3 too low 15 Flexible Table Block 40K+ · 4.9★ (34) wp.org #15 16 Nelio A/B Testing – AB Tests and Heatmaps for Better Conversion Optimization 4K+ · 4.8★ (99) wp.org #21 5 too low 17 Advanced Shipment Tracking for WooCommerce 70K+ · 4.5★ (355) wp.org #18 1 too low 18 Nexter Blocks – Gutenberg Blocks, Page Builder & AI Website Builder 9K+ · 4.8★ (90) wp.org #24 6 too low 19 HappyAddons for Elementor – 160 Elementor Widgets, GSAP Animations & Templates 400K+ · 4.8★ (489) wp.org #23 ↓3 4 too low 20 Giuliomax Menu Builder 20+ · 5.0★ (9) wp.org #16 ↑1 4 too high 21 WC Backorder Split 50+ · 3.7★ (3) wp.org #7 ↑1 14 too high 22 Virtuaria PagBank Split 20+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #13 9 too high 23 Uplink Admin Menu Manager 50+ · 4.0★ (1) wp.org #11 ↑5 12 too high 24 EasyTest – Simplify A/B Testing 10K+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #20 ↓1 4 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.