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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “tablet 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 “tablet menu”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 12 of the top 20. 1 plugin is 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

Menu Visibility Control shows at wp.org #7 but places #19 on merit, a gap of 12 places. Its 700+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 3 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

AI Engine – MCP Server & AI Chatbot for WordPress, with Claude, ChatGPT & Gemini places #11 on merit, 4.9★ from 874 reviews, but shows at wp.org #24. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Responsive Menu – Mobile Menu & Hamburger Menu Builder 70K+ · 4.5★ (574) wp.org #1 2 WP Mobile Menu – The Mobile-Friendly Responsive Menu 70K+ · 4.7★ (256) wp.org #2 3 Elementor Website Builder – more than just a page builder 10M+ · 4.5★ (7322) wp.org #3 4 Simple Floating Menu 10K+ · 5.0★ (38) wp.org #4 5 ElementsKit Elementor Addons – Advanced Widgets & Templates Addons for Elementor 1M+ · 4.9★ (2051) wp.org #9 4 too low 6 Five Star Restaurant Menu and Food Ordering 5K+ · 4.6★ (107) wp.org #6 7 WPB Accordion Menu – Collapsible Vertical Sidebar Responsive Mobile Menu – WooCommerce Category Accordion 10K+ · 4.4★ (54) wp.org #5 2 too high 8 Menu Image, Icons made easy 100K+ · 4.5★ (123) wp.org #11 3 too low 9 The Plus Addons for Elementor – Mega Menu, Header Footer, Post Grid, AI Widgets & Templates 100K+ · 4.6★ (388) wp.org #15 ↓1 6 too low 10 Kadence Blocks — Page Builder Toolkit for Gutenberg Editor 600K+ · 4.8★ (333) wp.org #13 ↑3 3 too low 11 AI Engine – MCP Server & AI Chatbot for WordPress, with Claude, ChatGPT & Gemini 90K+ · 4.9★ (874) wp.org #24 13 too low 12 GenerateBlocks 200K+ · 4.9★ (122) wp.org #16 ↓1 4 too low 13 Adminify – White Label, Admin Menu Editor, Login Customizer 6K+ · 4.3★ (109) wp.org #14 ↓1 1 too low 14 Master Addons for Elementor – Elementor Addons, Widgets, Mega Menu Builder, Popup Builder, Widget Builder & Template Kits 30K+ · 4.5★ (212) wp.org #19 5 too low 15 Robo Gallery – Photo & Image Slider 40K+ · 4.3★ (406) wp.org #20 ↑1 5 too low 16 WPCafe – Restaurant Menu, Online Food Ordering & Table Booking System 5K+ · 4.6★ (113) wp.org #18 2 too low 17 FileOrganizer – WordPress File Manager 200K+ · 4.8★ (49) wp.org #23 ↓1 6 too low 18 Bubble Menu – Floating Button Menu with Sticky Navigation 1K+ · 4.2★ (9) wp.org #8 10 too high 19 Menu Visibility Control 700+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #7 12 too high 20 F12 Floating Menu, sticky menu for WordPress 300+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #10 10 too high 21 WP Menu Image 2K+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #12 9 too high 22 Toast Mobile Menu – Fast & Lightweight Responsive Navigation 100+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #17 5 too high 23 Sticky Elementor – Sticky Header, Menu Color After Sticky, Logo Swap & Back to Top Button 600+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #21 ↓1 2 too high 24 Maestro: The Inline Admin Menu Editor 30+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #22 2 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.