wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “ultimate tab”
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 “ultimate tab”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 5 of the top 20. 6 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
Tab Ultimate shows at wp.org #13 but places #22 on merit, a gap of 9 places. Its 1K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 4.0★ average from 4 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
Ultimate Member – User Profile, Registration, Login, Member Directory, Content Restriction & Membership Plugin 200K+ · 4.4★ (1445)
wp.org #1 2 
Shortcodes Ultimate – Content Elements 400K+ · 4.9★ (5925) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #2 3 
Ultimate Blocks – 25+ Gutenberg Blocks for Block Editor 50K+ · 4.9★ (729) not PHP-current
wp.org #3 4 
Spectra Legacy – Gutenberg Blocks 1M+ · 4.7★ (1872) heavy footprint
wp.org #4 5 
Ultimate Addons for Elementor – Widgets, Templates, WooCommerce & Header Footer Builder 2M+ · 4.9★ (2528)
wp.org #8 ↑1 3 too low 6 
Ultimate FAQ Accordion Plugin 30K+ · 4.6★ (439) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #5 1 too high 7 
Ultimate Addons for Beaver Builder (UABB) 20K+ · 5.0★ (332)
wp.org #9 ↓1 2 too low 8 
Ultimate Post Kit – Elementor Post Grid, Post Carousel, Post Slider & Blog Layout Widgets 30K+ · 4.8★ (58)
wp.org #6 2 too high 9 
Ultimate Dashboard – Custom WordPress Dashboard 50K+ · 4.6★ (114)
wp.org #7 2 too high 10 
WP Ultimate CSV Importer – WordPress CSV, XML & Excel Import Export 20K+ · 4.4★ (593)
wp.org #10 11 
Popup Maker – Boost Sales, Conversions, Optins, Subscribers with the Ultimate WP Popup Builder 600K+ · 4.9★ (4514)
wp.org #14 ↓3 3 too low 12 
Image Hover Effects Ultimate ( Image Gallery, Effects, Lightbox, Comparison & Magnifier ) 10K+ · 4.7★ (250)
wp.org #11 ↑1 1 too high 13 
ElementsKit Elementor Addons – Advanced Widgets & Templates Addons for Elementor 1M+ · 4.9★ (2051)
wp.org #15 2 too low 14 
WP Ultimate Post Grid 4K+ · 4.4★ (32) heavy footprint
wp.org #16 2 too low 15 
PeproDev Ultimate Invoice 5K+ · 4.8★ (34)
wp.org #24 ↓2 9 too low 16 
Logo Showcase Ultimate – Logo Carousel, Logo Slider & Logo Grid 2K+ · 4.7★ (27)
wp.org #22 ↑1 6 too low 17 
Ultimate Floating Widgets – Make popup sidebars 3K+ · 4.9★ (14) thin reviews
wp.org #18 1 too low 18 
Ultimate Store Kit – Store Builder Addons for Elementor, WooCommerce Store Builder, EDD Store Builder 3K+ · 4.5★ (10) thin reviews
wp.org #12 ↑1 6 too high 19 
Product Carousel Slider & Grid Ultimate for WooCommerce 6K+ · 4.3★ (33)
wp.org #23 4 too low 20 
Export All Posts, Products, Orders & Users | WP Ultimate Exporter | WordPress CSV Export 6K+ · 3.2★ (16) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews
wp.org #19 1 too high 21 
Ultimate Coming Soon Page, Maintenance Mode & Under Construction – Gutenberg Block Builder & Landing Page 9K+ · 4.5★ (6) not PHP-current thin reviews
wp.org #20 1 too high 22 Tab Ultimate 1K+ · 4.0★ (4) not PHP-current thin reviews
wp.org #13 ↑1 9 too high 23 
Ultimate Cursor – Interactive and Animated Custom Cursor and Background Effects Toolkit 3K+ · 4.5★ (4) not PHP-current thin reviews
wp.org #17 6 too high 24 
MemberKits – Ultimate Member for Elementor 400+ · 5.0★ (2) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews
wp.org #21 3 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.