Plugin Pulse Beta
← Rankings

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

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 “trails”, 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

Animated Mouse Cursor Trail shows at wp.org #6 but places #22 on merit, a gap of 16 places. Its 100+ installs carry it up the search order; its 3.7★ average from 3 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Form Vibes – Save Contact Form 7 & Elementor Form Entries to Database places #11 on merit, 4.9★ from 132 reviews, but shows at wp.org #22. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Stream – Activity Log & Audit Trail 70K+ · 4.3★ (76) wp.org #1 2 Activity Log – Monitor User and Agent Changes 200K+ · 4.3★ (74) wp.org #2 ↑3 3 Simple History – Track, Log, and Audit WordPress Changes 300K+ · 4.9★ (491) wp.org #5 ↓3 2 too low 4 Breadcrumb NavXT 800K+ · 4.6★ (132) wp.org #3 1 too high 5 Elementor Website Builder – more than just a page builder 10M+ · 4.5★ (7323) wp.org #4 1 too high 6 ElementsKit Elementor Addons – Advanced Widgets & Templates Addons for Elementor 1M+ · 4.9★ (2051) wp.org #7 ↑6 1 too low 7 Cookie Compliance for WordPress – Cookie Consent, GDPR & CCPA 800K+ · 4.8★ (3026) wp.org #9 2 too low 8 GeoDirectory – WP Business Directory Plugin and Classified Listings Directory 10K+ · 4.8★ (716) wp.org #15 ↑1 7 too low 9 Divi Torque Lite 50K+ · 4.7★ (116) wp.org #10 1 too low 10 Slim SEO – AI SEO Plugin, Lightweight, Fast & Automated 70K+ · 4.7★ (136) wp.org #17 ↑1 7 too low 11 Form Vibes – Save Contact Form 7 & Elementor Form Entries to Database 10K+ · 4.9★ (132) wp.org #22 11 too low 12 HappyAddons for Elementor – 160 Elementor Widgets, GSAP Animations & Templates 400K+ · 4.8★ (489) wp.org #19 ↑1 7 too low 13 Waymark 900+ · 5.0★ (54) wp.org #20 ↓12 7 too low 14 Quttera ThreatSign – Web Malware Scanner for WordPress 10K+ · 3.9★ (47) wp.org #12 ↓1 2 too high 15 Breadcrumb Block 2K+ · 5.0★ (14) wp.org #14 ↑1 1 too high 16 No Self Ping 10K+ · 4.5★ (14) wp.org #13 ↑1 3 too high 17 SVG Block 4K+ · 5.0★ (14) wp.org #16 ↑1 1 too high 18 Catch Breadcrumb 2K+ · 5.0★ (5) wp.org #8 ↓1 10 too high 19 Flexy Breadcrumb 10K+ · 4.7★ (20) wp.org #21 2 too low 20 Embed YouTube Block – Fast Loading Videos, Shorts & Playlists 6K+ · 5.0★ (16) wp.org #23 3 too low 21 Who Changed It? – Activity Log & Audit Trail 100+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #11 ↑1 10 too high 22 Animated Mouse Cursor Trail 100+ · 3.7★ (3) wp.org #6 16 too high 23 Kansleri Cookie Consent 1K+ · 5.0★ (7) wp.org #24 1 too low 24 Smooth Custom Cursor 300+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #18 ↑1 6 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.