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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “submenu”

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 “submenu”, we and wp.org disagree on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 7 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

Read More Excerpt Link shows at wp.org #11 but places #18 on merit, a gap of 7 places. Its 3K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 6 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Responsive Menu – Mobile Menu & Hamburger Menu Builder places #9 on merit, 4.5★ from 574 reviews, but shows at wp.org #17. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Media Library Assistant 70K+ · 4.8★ (202) wp.org #2 1 too low 2 Admin and Site Enhancements (ASE) 200K+ · 5.0★ (423) wp.org #3 1 too low 3 Auto Submenu 2K+ · 4.0★ (25) wp.org #1 2 too high 4 Admin Menu Editor 300K+ · 4.6★ (312) wp.org #4 5 PublishPress Blocks – Block Controls, Block Visibility, Block Permissions 20K+ · 4.7★ (204) wp.org #8 ↑2 3 too low 6 User Admin Simplifier 10K+ · 5.0★ (31) wp.org #6 ↑1 7 Category Posts in Custom Menu 2K+ · 4.8★ (43) wp.org #7 ↓1 8 Admin Bar Editor – Toolbar Customization with User Role based access & Custom menus 3K+ · 4.4★ (24) wp.org #5 ↑3 3 too high 9 Responsive Menu – Mobile Menu & Hamburger Menu Builder 70K+ · 4.5★ (574) wp.org #17 8 too low 10 Genesis Simple Share 10K+ · 4.4★ (33) wp.org #9 1 too high 11 Bricks Navigator 8K+ · 5.0★ (19) wp.org #10 ↓5 1 too high 12 E Easy Username Updater 10K+ · 4.2★ (38) wp.org #12 13 FV Flowplayer Video Player 10K+ · 4.4★ (90) wp.org #20 ↓1 7 too low 14 No Gutenberg? – Choose Where to Use the Block Editor or the Classic Editor 9K+ · 5.0★ (16) wp.org #13 1 too high 15 SlickNav Mobile Menu 3K+ · 4.8★ (24) wp.org #14 1 too high 16 Float menu – awesome floating side menu 30K+ · 4.4★ (41) wp.org #24 8 too low 17 Offcanvas Mobile Menu 800+ · 4.9★ (18) wp.org #19 ↓2 2 too low 18 Read More Excerpt Link 3K+ · 5.0★ (6) wp.org #11 7 too high 19 Better Block Editor (BBE) 6K+ · 5.0★ (11) wp.org #18 1 too high 20 M Message Filter for Contact Form 7 1K+ · 4.9★ (13) wp.org #22 2 too low 21 Responsive Vertical Icon Menu 700+ · 5.0★ (7) wp.org #16 5 too high 22 Delete Unscaled Images 900+ · 5.0★ (5) wp.org #15 7 too high 23 YITH WooCommerce Featured Video 3K+ · 2.9★ (34) wp.org #21 ↓3 2 too high 24 S SMS Extension for Contact Form 7 400+ · 5.0★ (6) wp.org #23 1 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.