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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “top bar”

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 “top bar”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 9 of the top 20. 2 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

Top Bar Links, add custom links to the admin top bar shows at wp.org #6 but places #18 on merit, a gap of 12 places. Its 100+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 4 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

MC4WP: Mailchimp for WordPress places #10 on merit, 4.8★ from 1497 reviews, but shows at wp.org #23. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 MC4WP: Mailchimp Top Bar – Email Subscribe Notification Bar 6K+ · 4.6★ (31) wp.org #1 2 WPFront Notification Bar 40K+ · 4.5★ (131) wp.org #3 1 too low 3 My Sticky Bar – Floating Notification Bar & Sticky Header (formerly myStickymenu) 100K+ · 4.9★ (1199) wp.org #7 ↓2 4 too low 4 WebberZone Top 10 — Popular Posts 10K+ · 4.6★ (102) wp.org #4 5 Top Bar 10K+ · 4.0★ (43) wp.org #2 3 too high 6 Smooth Back To Top Button 40K+ · 4.9★ (31) wp.org #5 ↑2 1 too high 7 Notibar – Notification Bar for WordPress 8K+ · 4.8★ (71) wp.org #8 ↑1 1 too low 8 Cookie Bar 10K+ · 4.9★ (23) wp.org #10 2 too low 9 Simple Banner – Easily add multiple Banners/Bars/Notifications/Announcements to the top or bottom of your website 50K+ · 4.8★ (45) wp.org #13 ↑4 4 too low 10 MC4WP: Mailchimp for WordPress 1M+ · 4.8★ (1497) wp.org #23 ↑1 13 too low 11 Mobile Contact Bar 9K+ · 4.6★ (30) wp.org #12 ↓1 1 too low 12 Speed Contact Bar 4K+ · 4.6★ (56) wp.org #15 ↑1 3 too low 13 Easy Notification Bar 9K+ · 4.6★ (16) wp.org #9 ↓1 4 too high 14 Admin Bar Editor – Toolbar Customization with User Role based access & Custom menus 3K+ · 4.4★ (24) wp.org #11 ↑1 3 too high 15 EU Cookies Bar for WordPress 9K+ · 4.8★ (26) wp.org #14 ↓1 1 too high 16 Auto Hide Admin Bar 3K+ · 4.8★ (32) wp.org #17 ↑1 1 too low 17 Progress Bar 1K+ · 5.0★ (24) wp.org #18 ↑1 1 too low 18 Top Bar Links, add custom links to the admin top bar 100+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #6 12 too high 19 HashBar – Announcement, Notification Bar & Popup Campaign 9K+ · 4.2★ (38) wp.org #19 ↓5 20 Freetop – Free Shipping Bar for WooCommerce 2K+ · 4.7★ (40) wp.org #22 ↑1 2 too low 21 Notification Bar, Announcement and Cookie Notice WordPress Plugin – FooBar 3K+ · 4.8★ (10) wp.org #21 22 MakeITeasy Back To Top 2K+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #16 ↓1 6 too high 23 YooBar – Notification Bar & Announcement Bar 100+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #24 1 too low 24 Header Promo – grab attention with a top bar announcement 400+ · 4.0★ (2) wp.org #20 4 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.