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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “widget columns”

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 “widget columns”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 10 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

Dashboard Columns shows at wp.org #7 but places #21 on merit, a gap of 14 places. Its 1K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 2 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

PowerPack Addons for Elementor: Widgets, Form Styler and Templates places #11 on merit, 4.8★ from 361 reviews, but shows at wp.org #17. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Essential Addons for Elementor – Popular Elementor Templates & Widgets 1M+ · 4.9★ (4132) wp.org #1 2 ElementsKit Elementor Addons – Advanced Widgets & Templates Addons for Elementor 1M+ · 4.9★ (2051) wp.org #2 3 Premium Addons for Elementor – AI-Ready Elementor Addons, Widgets & Templates 600K+ · 4.9★ (1680) wp.org #4 ↓1 1 too low 4 Widget Options – Advanced Conditional Visibility for Gutenberg Blocks & Classic Widgets 100K+ · 4.9★ (1516) wp.org #6 ↓2 2 too low 5 TablePress – Tables in WordPress made easy 600K+ · 5.0★ (4625) wp.org #10 ↓2 5 too low 6 Make Column Clickable for Elementor 100K+ · 4.9★ (53) wp.org #5 1 too high 7 Admin and Site Enhancements (ASE) 200K+ · 5.0★ (423) wp.org #12 ↓2 5 too low 8 SiteOrigin Widgets Bundle 400K+ · 4.9★ (134) wp.org #9 ↓2 1 too low 9 Genesis Widget Column Classes 5K+ · 4.5★ (8) wp.org #3 6 too high 10 WPZOOM Social Feed Widget & Block 50K+ · 4.3★ (51) wp.org #8 ↓2 2 too high 11 PowerPack Addons for Elementor: Widgets, Form Styler and Templates 70K+ · 4.8★ (361) wp.org #17 ↓2 6 too low 12 Elementor Website Builder – more than just a page builder 10M+ · 4.5★ (7323) wp.org #13 ↓2 1 too low 13 Content Aware Sidebars – Fastest Widget Area Plugin 30K+ · 4.9★ (724) wp.org #16 3 too low 14 Master Addons for Elementor – Elementor Addons, Widgets, Mega Menu Builder, Popup Builder, Widget Builder & Template Kits 30K+ · 4.5★ (212) wp.org #15 ↓3 1 too low 15 HappyAddons for Elementor – 160 Elementor Widgets, GSAP Animations & Templates 400K+ · 4.8★ (489) wp.org #11 ↓2 4 too high 16 Custom Twitter Feeds – A Tweets Widget or X Feed Widget 100K+ · 4.8★ (401) wp.org #19 ↓2 3 too low 17 ShopEngine – All-in-One Elementor WooCommerce Builder with eCommerce Templates & Woo Widgets 100K+ · 4.6★ (212) wp.org #24 ↓3 7 too low 18 Tabs Widget for Page Builder 3K+ · 4.8★ (19) wp.org #14 ↓1 4 too high 19 Xpro Addons — 150+ Widgets for Elementor 40K+ · 4.4★ (28) wp.org #22 ↑1 3 too low 20 Social Media Icon Widget – Social Profile Links with Gutenberg Block 4K+ · 4.1★ (16) wp.org #20 ↓1 21 Dashboard Columns 1K+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #7 ↓2 14 too high 22 Most And Least Read Posts Widget 900+ · 5.0★ (6) wp.org #23 ↓1 1 too low 23 Multicolumn Category Widget 300+ · 4.2★ (5) wp.org #18 ↓2 5 too high 24 Web Stories Widgets For Elementor 900+ · 5.0★ (6) wp.org #21 ↓1 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.