wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “website widget”
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 widget”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 12 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
Website LLMs.txt shows at wp.org #5 but places #13 on merit, a gap of 8 places. Its 50K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 4.7★ average from 12 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
Buried gem
Rich Showcase for Google Reviews places #6 on merit, 4.9★ from 1623 reviews, but shows at wp.org #12. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.
Elementor Website Builder – more than just a page builder 10M+ · 4.5★ (7323) not PHP-currentheavy footprint
wp.org #1 2 
Widgets for Google Reviews 1M+ · 4.9★ (2667)
wp.org #2 3 
Essential Addons for Elementor – Popular Elementor Templates & Widgets 1M+ · 4.9★ (4132) not PHP-current
wp.org #3 4 
ElementsKit Elementor Addons – Advanced Widgets & Templates Addons for Elementor 1M+ · 4.9★ (2051)
wp.org #4 ↑1 5 
Premium Addons for Elementor – AI-Ready Elementor Addons, Widgets & Templates 600K+ · 4.9★ (1680)
wp.org #6 1 too low 6 Rich Showcase for Google Reviews 100K+ · 4.9★ (1623)
wp.org #12 ↑2 6 too low 7 
Ultimate Addons for Elementor – Widgets, Templates, WooCommerce & Header Footer Builder 2M+ · 4.9★ (2528)
wp.org #11 ↑4 4 too low 8 
Widget Options – Advanced Conditional Visibility for Gutenberg Blocks & Classic Widgets 100K+ · 4.9★ (1516)
wp.org #14 ↓1 6 too low 9 
Recent Posts Widget With Thumbnails 100K+ · 4.8★ (215)
wp.org #10 ↓1 1 too low 10 
Starter Templates: AI-Powered Website Templates for Elementor & Gutenberg 1M+ · 4.9★ (4755)
wp.org #13 ↓1 3 too low 11 
MonsterInsights – Google Analytics Dashboard for WordPress (Website Stats Made Easy) 2M+ · 4.5★ (3157) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #7 4 too high 12 
Translate WordPress with GTranslate 900K+ · 4.9★ (4962)
wp.org #17 ↓1 5 too low 13 Website LLMs.txt 50K+ · 4.7★ (12) thin reviews
wp.org #5 ↓1 8 too high 14 
Widget Context 30K+ · 4.5★ (98) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #8 6 too high 15 
Widgets for Social Photo Feed 10K+ · 4.7★ (28)
wp.org #9 ↑1 6 too high 16 
Black Studio TinyMCE Widget 200K+ · 4.8★ (191)
wp.org #16 ↑2 17 
Floating Chat Widget: Contact Chat Icons, Telegram Chat, Line Messenger, WeChat, Email, SMS, Call Button – Chaty 300K+ · 5.0★ (1244)
wp.org #24 7 too low 18 
Beaver Builder Page Builder – Drag and Drop Website Builder 100K+ · 4.7★ (394)
wp.org #23 5 too low 19 
SiteOrigin Widgets Bundle 400K+ · 4.9★ (134)
wp.org #21 2 too low 20 
WPZOOM Social Feed Widget & Block 50K+ · 4.3★ (51)
wp.org #15 ↑2 5 too high 21 
Spectra Blocks – AI Website Builder for the Block Editor 60K+ · 4.6★ (53) heavy footprint
wp.org #18 ↓7 3 too high 22 
AccessiYes Accessibility Widget for ADA, EAA & WCAG Readiness 20K+ · 4.8★ (36)
wp.org #20 2 too high 23 
Prisna GWT – Google Website Translator 8K+ · 4.5★ (54)
wp.org #19 4 too high 24 
Tagembed: Social Media Feeds and Customer Reviews Widget 9K+ · 3.9★ (62)
wp.org #22 2 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.