wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “ui”
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 “ui”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 7 of the top 20. 3 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
CookieAdmin – Cookie Consent Banner shows at wp.org #11 but places #24 on merit, a gap of 13 places. Its 400K+ 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
Members – Membership & User Role Editor Plugin places #10 on merit, 4.9★ from 1281 reviews, but shows at wp.org #18. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.
Custom Post Type UI 1M+ · 4.6★ (276)
wp.org #1 2 
Forminator Forms – Contact Form, Payment Form & Custom Form Builder 600K+ · 4.8★ (2144)
wp.org #4 2 too low 3 
Advanced Custom Fields (ACF®) 2M+ · 4.5★ (1440) heavy footprint
wp.org #3 ↑2 4 
Rich Showcase for Google Reviews 100K+ · 4.9★ (1623)
wp.org #7 3 too low 5 
Shortcodes Ultimate – Content Elements 400K+ · 4.9★ (5925) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #5 ↑6 6 
Simple Custom Post Order 300K+ · 4.8★ (588)
wp.org #6 ↓3 7 
Popups for Divi 100K+ · 4.8★ (442)
wp.org #9 2 too low 8 
Meta Box – A Framework for Dynamic Websites 500K+ · 4.8★ (165)
wp.org #8 ↑1 9 
Responsive UI for Beaver Builder 300+ · 5.0★ (5) thin reviews
wp.org #2 7 too high 10 Members – Membership & User Role Editor Plugin 300K+ · 4.9★ (1281)
wp.org #18 ↓12 8 too low 11 
Ultimate FAQ Accordion Plugin 30K+ · 4.6★ (439) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #10 ↓2 1 too high 12 
File Manager Pro – Filester 100K+ · 4.9★ (155)
wp.org #14 ↑10 2 too low 13 
Blocks Animation: CSS Animations for Gutenberg Blocks 90K+ · 4.8★ (73)
wp.org #12 ↓2 1 too high 14 
Advanced Custom Fields: Extended 100K+ · 4.8★ (132)
wp.org #19 ↓4 5 too low 15 J jQuery Updater 20K+ · 4.5★ (64)
wp.org #15 ↓2 16 
WP Datepicker 6K+ · 4.8★ (37)
wp.org #16 17 
Cart Abandonment Recovery for WooCommerce – Recover Lost Sales with Automated Emails 300K+ · 4.8★ (626) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #20 3 too low 18 
GTM4WP – A Google Tag Manager (GTM) plugin for WordPress 700K+ · 4.5★ (155)
wp.org #23 5 too low 19 
CMB2 300K+ · 5.0★ (91) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #17 ↓3 2 too high 20 
MB Custom Post Types & Custom Taxonomies 10K+ · 4.7★ (13) thin reviews
wp.org #13 ↓1 7 too high 21 
YMC Filter 4K+ · 4.8★ (34)
wp.org #21 ↓14 22 
Custom Post Types and Custom Fields creator – WCK 10K+ · 4.7★ (97) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #24 ↓6 2 too low 23 
WP API SwaggerUI 2K+ · 5.0★ (11) thin reviews
wp.org #22 ↓6 1 too high 24 CookieAdmin – Cookie Consent Banner 400K+ · 5.0★ (4) host-installed base thin reviews
wp.org #11 ↑6 13 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.