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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “website preloader”

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 “website preloader”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 14 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

WP Preloader 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 4.0★ average from 4 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

The Plus Addons for Elementor – Mega Menu, Header Footer, Post Grid, AI Widgets & Templates places #12 on merit, 4.6★ from 388 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 Safelayout Cute Preloader – CSS3 WordPress Preloader 10K+ · 5.0★ (84) wp.org #1 2 Preloader 10K+ · 4.1★ (41) wp.org #2 3 Super Page Cache – Cloudflare Cache, Page Speed & Core Web Vitals 70K+ · 4.8★ (517) wp.org #10 ↓1 7 too low 4 Nexter Blocks – Gutenberg Blocks, Page Builder & AI Website Builder 9K+ · 4.8★ (90) wp.org #8 ↑2 4 too low 5 WP-Optimize – Cache, Compress images, Minify & Clean database to boost page speed & performance 1M+ · 4.8★ (2617) wp.org #14 9 too low 6 Live Composer – Free WordPress Website Builder 10K+ · 4.4★ (212) wp.org #7 1 too low 7 Ocean Extra 400K+ · 3.3★ (67) wp.org #5 ↓1 2 too high 8 Coming Soon & Maintenance Mode Page & Under Construction 10K+ · 4.8★ (317) wp.org #16 ↑1 8 too low 9 LoftLoader 70K+ · 4.5★ (33) wp.org #9 ↓1 10 FiboSearch – Ajax Search for WooCommerce 100K+ · 4.9★ (1815) wp.org #18 8 too low 11 Video Popup – Video Lightbox for YouTube, Vimeo & MP4 10K+ · 4.5★ (43) wp.org #11 12 The Plus Addons for Elementor – Mega Menu, Header Footer, Post Grid, AI Widgets & Templates 100K+ · 4.6★ (388) wp.org #23 11 too low 13 BH Custom CSS3 Preloader – Just play and play 700+ · 3.8★ (6) wp.org #3 10 too high 14 DWL Preloader 300+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #4 ↑1 10 too high 15 Sina Extension for Elementor 40K+ · 4.9★ (35) wp.org #12 3 too high 16 Additional Variation Images Gallery for WooCommerce 30K+ · 4.6★ (162) wp.org #20 ↓2 4 too low 17 WP Smart Preloader 5K+ · 4.4★ (25) wp.org #13 4 too high 18 WP Preloader 100+ · 4.0★ (4) wp.org #6 12 too high 19 Archive Page 700+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #15 4 too high 20 UiCore Animate – Free Animations, Transitions, and Interactions Addon for Elementor & Gutenberg blocks 40K+ · 3.2★ (10) wp.org #17 ↓1 3 too high 21 WP Counter Up – Animated Number Counter & Milestone Showcase 1K+ · 4.0★ (5) wp.org #21 ↓1 22 Custom Preloader 100+ · 4.5★ (2) wp.org #19 ↑1 3 too high 23 Advanced Preloader 20+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #22 1 too high 24 VenoBox – Lightweight & Responsive Lightbox Plugin 200+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #24

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.