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← Rankings

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

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 “toggle”, we and wp.org disagree on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 11 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

Website Open/Closed Toggle shows at wp.org #4 but places #22 on merit, a gap of 18 places. Its 500+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 1 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

WP-Optimize – Cache, Compress images, Minify & Clean database to boost page speed & performance places #10 on merit, 4.8★ from 2617 reviews, but shows at wp.org #21. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Yoast SEO – Advanced SEO with real-time guidance and built-in AI 10M+ · 4.8★ (27821) wp.org #6 ↑3 5 too low 2 Accordion Toggle 2K+ · 4.5★ (8) wp.org #1 1 too high 3 Dark Mode Toggle 2K+ · 4.6★ (19) wp.org #2 1 too high 4 Loco Translate 1M+ · 4.8★ (453) wp.org #5 1 too low 5 Royal Addons for Elementor – Addons and Templates Kit for Elementor 600K+ · 4.8★ (612) wp.org #7 ↓1 2 too low 6 Max Mega Menu 300K+ · 4.8★ (882) wp.org #9 ↓1 3 too low 7 Essential Addons for Elementor – Popular Elementor Templates & Widgets 1M+ · 4.9★ (4132) wp.org #10 ↓1 3 too low 8 Kadence WooCommerce Email Designer 90K+ · 4.5★ (142) wp.org #12 4 too low 9 Dark Mode – Improve Accessibility with AI Powered Dark Theme 20K+ · 4.5★ (391) wp.org #19 ↑1 10 too low 10 WP-Optimize – Cache, Compress images, Minify & Clean database to boost page speed & performance 1M+ · 4.8★ (2617) wp.org #21 ↓5 11 too low 11 Simple History – Track, Log, and Audit WordPress Changes 300K+ · 4.9★ (491) wp.org #22 11 too low 12 BrikPanel: WooCommerce Dashboard & Analytics, Abandoned Cart Recovery, Order Export, Inventory Management & Bulk Editor 1K+ · 5.0★ (55) wp.org #11 ↑3 1 too high 13 WP-ShowHide 9K+ · 4.2★ (43) wp.org #13 14 Toggle Content 700+ · 3.0★ (6) wp.org #3 11 too high 15 Plugin Toggle 500+ · 4.8★ (18) wp.org #17 ↑1 2 too low 16 Arconix Shortcodes 3K+ · 4.6★ (24) wp.org #18 ↑1 2 too low 17 WP Media Category Management 6K+ · 4.7★ (35) wp.org #14 3 too high 18 Quick and Easy FAQs 10K+ · 4.6★ (36) wp.org #15 ↑2 3 too high 19 Grid/List View for WooCommerce 2K+ · 4.4★ (50) wp.org #20 ↑3 1 too low 20 Debug Log Manager Tool 3K+ · 5.0★ (22) wp.org #24 ↑2 4 too low 21 Simple SEO Noindex Toggle 60+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #8 ↑3 13 too high 22 Website Open/Closed Toggle 500+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #4 18 too high 23 Toggle Content Block 10+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #16 ↑1 7 too high 24 Toggle Admin Menu 10+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #23 ↑2 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.