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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “text block”

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 “text block”, we and wp.org disagree on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 7 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 the install base is organic or host-pushed, and its risk of being pulled.

Ranked above its merit

VK Block Patterns shows at wp.org #9 but places #22 on merit, a gap of 13 places. Its 100K+ 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

Wordfence Security – Firewall, Malware Scan, and Login Security places #9 on merit, 4.7★ from 5039 reviews, but shows at wp.org #16. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Spectra Legacy – Gutenberg Blocks 1M+ · 4.7★ (1872) wp.org #2 1 too low 2 Kadence Blocks — Page Builder Toolkit for Gutenberg Editor 600K+ · 4.8★ (333) wp.org #3 ↑12 1 too low 3 Animated Text Block – Add Typing and Looping Text Effects 4K+ · 4.8★ (5) wp.org #1 2 too high 4 Block Visibility — Conditional Visibility Control for the Block Editor 40K+ · 4.9★ (108) wp.org #5 1 too low 5 The Icon Block 40K+ · 5.0★ (29) wp.org #4 ↓1 1 too high 6 Lightbox for Gallery & Image Block 20K+ · 5.0★ (88) wp.org #6 7 Carousel Slider Block for Gutenberg 50K+ · 4.8★ (59) wp.org #7 ↑2 8 Otter Blocks – Gutenberg Blocks, Page Builder for Gutenberg Editor & FSE 300K+ · 4.7★ (251) wp.org #11 ↓3 3 too low 9 Wordfence Security – Firewall, Malware Scan, and Login Security 5M+ · 4.7★ (5039) wp.org #16 ↓2 7 too low 10 Image Alt Text 10K+ · 5.0★ (56) wp.org #12 ↓8 2 too low 11 Nexter Blocks – Gutenberg Blocks, Page Builder & AI Website Builder 9K+ · 4.8★ (90) wp.org #13 2 too low 12 Text To Speech TTS Accessibility 4K+ · 4.8★ (92) wp.org #14 ↑2 2 too low 13 Flexible Table Block 40K+ · 4.9★ (34) wp.org #15 ↑4 2 too low 14 Gutenberg Essential Blocks – Page Builder for Gutenberg Blocks & Patterns 100K+ · 4.9★ (216) wp.org #24 10 too low 15 SVG Block 4K+ · 5.0★ (14) wp.org #10 ↑3 5 too high 16 Spectra Blocks – AI Website Builder for the Block Editor 60K+ · 4.6★ (53) wp.org #19 ↓9 3 too low 17 Map Block for Google Maps 20K+ · 4.6★ (21) wp.org #18 1 too low 18 Iconic Copy Text Blocks 400+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #8 ↓1 10 too high 19 Button Block – Stylish buttons that get more clicks 5K+ · 5.0★ (7) wp.org #20 1 too low 20 Timeline Block For Gutenberg 9K+ · 4.4★ (11) wp.org #17 3 too high 21 Text Unfold For Elementor 3K+ · 4.6★ (7) wp.org #21 22 VK Block Patterns 100K+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #9 ↑2 13 too high 23 Text Typing – grab attention with animated typing headlines 3K+ · 3.8★ (6) wp.org #22 ↑1 1 too high 24 eRecht24 Legal Texts 50K+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #23 ↓1 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.