wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “taxonomy widget”

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 “taxonomy widget”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 10 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

Simple Taxonomy Refreshed shows at wp.org #10 but places #20 on merit, a gap of 10 places. Its 400+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 5 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

merit plugin signals wp.org

List Custom Taxonomy Widget 8K+ · 4.7★ (21) thin reviews wp.org #1 2

ElementsKit Elementor Addons – Advanced Widgets & Templates Addons for Elementor 1M+ · 4.9★ (2051) wp.org #3 1 too low 3

Category Order and Taxonomy Terms Order 500K+ · 4.5★ (162) wp.org #2 1 too high 4

Premium Addons for Elementor – AI-Ready Elementor Addons, Widgets & Templates 600K+ · 4.9★ (1680) wp.org #7 ↓1 3 too low 5

Widget Options – Advanced Conditional Visibility for Gutenberg Blocks & Classic Widgets 100K+ · 4.9★ (1516) wp.org #8 ↓1 3 too low 6

Beautiful taxonomy filters 2K+ · 4.9★ (68) wp.org #4 2 too high 7

Ultimate Addons for Elementor – Widgets, Templates, WooCommerce & Header Footer Builder 2M+ · 4.9★ (2528) wp.org #11 ↓1 3 too low 9

PublishPress Taxonomies – Tag, Category, and Taxonomy Manager – Autotagger Automatically Add Terms 40K+ · 4.6★ (195) wp.org #9 ↑7 10

Polylang 900K+ · 4.7★ (3003) wp.org #13 ↑4 3 too low 11

Widget Context 30K+ · 4.5★ (98) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #6 ↑6 5 too high 12

The Events Calendar 600K+ · 4.2★ (2461) wp.org #14 2 too low 13

SiteOrigin Widgets Bundle 400K+ · 4.9★ (134) wp.org #12 ↓4 1 too high 14

Admin and Site Enhancements (ASE) 200K+ · 5.0★ (423) wp.org #18 ↑3 4 too low 15

Royal Addons for Elementor – Addons and Templates Kit for Elementor 600K+ · 4.8★ (612) wp.org #17 ↓2 2 too low 16

Pods – Custom Content Types and Fields 100K+ · 4.8★ (418) wp.org #24 ↓1 8 too low 17

Advanced Custom Fields (ACF®) 2M+ · 4.5★ (1440) heavy footprint wp.org #19 2 too low 18

Dynamic Widgets 10K+ · 4.7★ (109) wp.org #23 5 too low 19

WP Categories Widget 6K+ · 4.5★ (27) not PHP-current wp.org #15 ↓2 4 too high 20 S Simple Taxonomy Refreshed 400+ · 5.0★ (5) thin reviews wp.org #10 ↓1 10 too high 21

MDTF – Meta Data and Taxonomies Filter 900+ · 4.5★ (28) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #21 ↓2 22

Better Post & Filter Widgets for Elementor 4K+ · 5.0★ (18) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews wp.org #22 ↓2 23 T Taxonomy Dropdown Widget 1K+ · 4.7★ (9) not PHP-current thin reviews wp.org #16 ↓5 7 too high 24 T Taxonomy List Widget 1K+ · 4.3★ (12) not PHP-current thin reviews wp.org #20 ↓2 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.