Plugin Pulse Beta
← Rankings

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

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 “teaser”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 9 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

Teaser Post Title shows at wp.org #10 but places #19 on merit, a gap of 9 places. Its 10+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 2 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

PPWP – Password Protect Pages places #11 on merit, 4.7★ from 271 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 Elementor Website Builder – more than just a page builder 10M+ · 4.5★ (7323) wp.org #1 2 Restricted Site Access 10K+ · 4.8★ (62) wp.org #2 3 Ninja Forms – Contact Form Builder with Calculators, Quizzes, Signatures & AI Form Builder 500K+ · 4.4★ (1397) wp.org #4 ↓1 1 too low 4 PublishPress Permissions: Access Control, Content Permissions, User Access 10K+ · 4.3★ (66) wp.org #3 ↑3 1 too high 5 Content Control – The Ultimate Content Restriction Solution! Restrict Content, Create Conditional Blocks & More 40K+ · 4.9★ (575) wp.org #7 ↓2 2 too low 6 Simple Membership 40K+ · 4.6★ (475) wp.org #5 ↑2 1 too high 7 WP-Members Membership Plugin 50K+ · 4.6★ (272) wp.org #8 1 too low 8 Read More Without Refresh 20K+ · 4.2★ (55) wp.org #6 ↓2 2 too high 9 Tutor LMS – eLearning and online course solution 100K+ · 4.4★ (590) wp.org #12 ↓1 3 too low 10 All-in-One Video Gallery – Video Player & Galleries for YouTube, Vimeo & Self-Hosted Videos 20K+ · 4.8★ (136) wp.org #13 ↓1 3 too low 11 PPWP – Password Protect Pages 30K+ · 4.7★ (271) wp.org #19 ↑1 8 too low 12 Lazy Load for Videos 9K+ · 4.4★ (105) wp.org #11 ↑2 1 too high 13 MasterStudy LMS WordPress Plugin – for Online Courses and Education 10K+ · 4.5★ (487) wp.org #24 11 too low 14 Restrict User Access – Ultimate Membership & Content Protection 10K+ · 4.3★ (94) wp.org #15 1 too low 15 Promolayer – Popup Builder & Abandonment Preventer 1K+ · 5.0★ (5) wp.org #17 ↑1 2 too low 16 Build Mode – Maintenance Mode & Coming Soon Page 200+ · 5.0★ (5) wp.org #20 ↑1 4 too low 17 Product Teaser Pro 10+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #9 8 too high 18 Subscribe to Unlock Lite – Opt In Content Locker Plugin for WordPress 500+ · 3.9★ (10) wp.org #21 ↑1 3 too low 19 Teaser Post Title 10+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #10 9 too high 20 Tab Teaser — · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #14 6 too high 21 Grid Landing Page Editor 60+ · 3.8★ (4) wp.org #22 ↑1 1 too low 22 SureMembers – Membership & Content Restriction Plugin 2K+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #23 ↑1 1 too low 23 Smartarget Get Followers Teaser 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #18 ↑1 5 too high 24 Gallery Showcase for WordPress 100+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #16 8 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.