wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “team hover”

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 “team hover”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 6 of the top 20. 3 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

Team Section Block – Showcase Team Members with Layout Options 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 3.0★ average from 1 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Unlimited Elements for Elementor places #10 on merit, 4.8★ from 525 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 signals wp.org

Team – Team Members Showcase Plugin 10K+ · 4.5★ (67) wp.org #1 2

Team Members – Multi Language Supported Team Plugin 6K+ · 5.0★ (85) wp.org #2 3

Image Hover Effects Ultimate ( Image Gallery, Effects, Lightbox, Comparison & Magnifier ) 10K+ · 4.7★ (250) wp.org #5 2 too low 4

Responsive Team Members Showcase, Team Grid, Team Slider, and Staff List – Smart Team (formerly WP Team) 5K+ · 4.7★ (92) wp.org #4 5

Team Members Showcase 4K+ · 4.9★ (21) thin reviews wp.org #3 2 too high 6

Team Members – A WordPress Team Plugin with Gallery, Grid, Carousel, Slider, Table, List, and More 2K+ · 4.7★ (91) wp.org #6 7

Essential Addons for Elementor – Popular Elementor Templates & Widgets 1M+ · 4.9★ (4132) not PHP-current wp.org #8 1 too low 8

ElementsKit Elementor Addons – Advanced Widgets & Templates Addons for Elementor 1M+ · 4.9★ (2051) wp.org #11 3 too low 9

Team Members 20K+ · 4.2★ (53) wp.org #7 2 too high 10

Unlimited Elements for Elementor 300K+ · 4.8★ (525) wp.org #19 9 too low 11

Weblizar Pin It Button On Image Hover And Post 10K+ · 4.0★ (64) wp.org #9 2 too high 12

Modula Image Gallery – Photo Grid & Video Gallery 100K+ · 4.7★ (616) wp.org #21 ↑2 9 too low 13

Kadence Blocks — Page Builder Toolkit for Gutenberg Editor 600K+ · 4.8★ (333) heavy footprint wp.org #14 ↑1 1 too low 14

Flipbox – Awesomes Flip Boxes Image Overlay 9K+ · 4.7★ (149) wp.org #15 ↓1 1 too low 15

Premium Addons for Elementor – AI-Ready Elementor Addons, Widgets & Templates 600K+ · 4.9★ (1680) wp.org #24 9 too low 16

Robo Gallery – Photo & Image Slider 40K+ · 4.3★ (406) wp.org #22 6 too low 17

HappyAddons for Elementor – 160 Elementor Widgets, GSAP Animations & Templates 400K+ · 4.8★ (489) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #16 1 too high 18

Dynamic Team Manager – Team Member Showcase with grid, slider, table Elementor widget & shortcode 900+ · 4.6★ (25) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #10 8 too high 19

WP Duplicate Page 60K+ · 4.2★ (16) thin reviews wp.org #17 2 too high 20

Image Hover Effects – WordPress Plugin 3K+ · 4.4★ (42) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #20 21

Image Hover Effects For WPBakery Page Builder 3K+ · 4.3★ (14) thin reviews wp.org #23 ↓2 2 too low 22

Team Builder Member Showcase 1K+ · 3.8★ (4) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews wp.org #13 9 too high 23

WBD Team Member – Gutenberg Block 100+ · 5.0★ (1) thin reviews wp.org #18 5 too high 24

Team Section Block – Showcase Team Members with Layout Options 1K+ · 3.0★ (1) thin reviews 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.