wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “tinymce button”
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 “tinymce button”, 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
PRyC WP: TinyMCE more buttons shows at wp.org #3 but places #16 on merit, a gap of 13 places. Its 1K+ 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
Post and Page Builder by BoldGrid – Visual Drag and Drop Editor places #8 on merit, 4.7★ from 140 reviews, but shows at wp.org #15. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.
Advanced Editor Tools 1M+ · 4.5★ (354)
wp.org #1 2 
Black Studio TinyMCE Widget 200K+ · 4.8★ (191)
wp.org #2 3 
MaxButtons – Create buttons 70K+ · 4.9★ (1093)
wp.org #4 1 too low 4 
Simple Download Monitor 20K+ · 4.7★ (158)
wp.org #5 1 too low 5 
Download Manager 100K+ · 4.1★ (1006)
wp.org #8 ↓1 3 too low 6 
Ad Inserter – Ad Manager & AdSense Ads 300K+ · 4.9★ (2433)
wp.org #12 ↑2 6 too low 7 
Classic Editor 8M+ · 4.9★ (1251)
wp.org #11 4 too low 8 Post and Page Builder by BoldGrid – Visual Drag and Drop Editor 50K+ · 4.7★ (140)
wp.org #15 7 too low 9 
AddQuicktag 100K+ · 4.7★ (44)
wp.org #10 1 too low 10 
Chat Widget: Floating Customer Support Button for 30+ Channels, Supporting SMS, Calls, and Chat – Bit Assist 9K+ · 4.9★ (111)
wp.org #13 ↓1 3 too low 11 
File Manager Pro – Filester 100K+ · 4.9★ (155)
wp.org #17 6 too low 12 
Change Text Case 1K+ · 4.8★ (21) thin reviews
wp.org #9 3 too high 13 
Metronet Tag Manager 20K+ · 4.8★ (8) thin reviews
wp.org #7 ↑1 6 too high 14 
Advanced Custom Fields (ACF®) 2M+ · 4.5★ (1440) heavy footprint
wp.org #24 10 too low 15 
Comment Form Editor with TinyMCE 80+ · 5.0★ (5) thin reviews
wp.org #6 9 too high 16 PRyC WP: TinyMCE more buttons 1K+ · 5.0★ (2) thin reviews
wp.org #3 13 too high 17 
Bootstrap Shortcodes 4K+ · 5.0★ (23) thin reviews
wp.org #18 ↓2 1 too low 18 
Custom Field Template 30K+ · 4.0★ (24) thin reviews
wp.org #16 ↑1 2 too high 19 
Re-add text underline and justify 50K+ · 4.7★ (25)
wp.org #21 ↓1 2 too low 20 
Easy Bootstrap Shortcode 6K+ · 4.0★ (50)
wp.org #20 ↓1 21 
CMB2 300K+ · 5.0★ (91) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #22 ↓1 1 too low 22 
MRW Simplified Editor 100+ · 5.0★ (4) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews
wp.org #14 ↓1 8 too high 23 
WP-Yomigana 2K+ · 5.0★ (3) thin reviews
wp.org #23 24 
WP Heading Buttons 100+ · 5.0★ (1) thin reviews
wp.org #19 ↓1 5 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.