wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “wordpress tooltip plugin”
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 “wordpress tooltip plugin”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 13 of the top 20.
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 the install base is organic or host-pushed, and its risk of being pulled.
Ranked above its merit
Glossary Tooltip – Highlight Terms & Show Tooltips shows at wp.org #14 but places #24 on merit, a gap of 10 places. Its 100+ 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
Photo Gallery, Sliders, Proofing and Themes – NextGEN Gallery places #10 on merit, 4.3★ from 4342 reviews, but shows at wp.org #15. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.
UpdraftPlus: WP Backup & Migration Plugin 4M+ · 4.8★ (8708)
wp.org #1 2 
BackWPup – WordPress Backup & Restore Plugin 400K+ · 4.0★ (1323)
wp.org #2 3 
MonsterInsights – Google Analytics Dashboard for WordPress (Website Stats Made Easy) 2M+ · 4.5★ (3157)
wp.org #3 4 
WPForms – AI Form Builder for WordPress – Contact Forms, Payment Forms, Survey Form, Quiz & More 5M+ · 4.8★ (14387)
wp.org #5 1 too low 5 
Independent Analytics – WordPress Analytics Plugin 100K+ · 4.8★ (167)
wp.org #4 1 too high 6 
Burst Statistics – Simple WordPress Analytics (Google Analytics Alternative) 200K+ · 4.9★ (186)
wp.org #7 1 too low 7 
Essential Addons for Elementor – Popular Elementor Templates & Widgets 1M+ · 4.9★ (4132)
wp.org #11 ↓2 4 too low 8 
The Events Calendar 600K+ · 4.2★ (2461)
wp.org #10 2 too low 9 
Modula Image Gallery – Photo Grid & Video Gallery 100K+ · 4.7★ (616)
wp.org #12 ↑1 3 too low 10 Photo Gallery, Sliders, Proofing and Themes – NextGEN Gallery 300K+ · 4.3★ (4342)
wp.org #15 ↓3 5 too low 11 
CM Tooltip Glossary 7K+ · 4.3★ (157)
wp.org #8 ↓1 3 too high 12 
FancyBox for WordPress 30K+ · 4.6★ (92)
wp.org #9 ↓1 3 too high 13 T Tooltips for WordPress 5K+ · 3.8★ (75)
wp.org #6 7 too high 14 
GeoDirectory – WP Business Directory Plugin and Classified Listings Directory 10K+ · 4.8★ (716)
wp.org #17 ↑1 3 too low 15 
CartFlows – Funnel Builder & Checkout Plugin for WooCommerce 200K+ · 4.8★ (517)
wp.org #19 ↓3 4 too low 16 
Smush – Image Optimization, Compression, Lazy Load, WebP & CDN 1M+ · 4.8★ (6053)
wp.org #22 6 too low 17 
ElementsKit Elementor Addons – Advanced Widgets & Templates Addons for Elementor 1M+ · 4.9★ (2051)
wp.org #20 3 too low 18 
Variation Swatches for WooCommerce 300K+ · 4.8★ (926)
wp.org #23 5 too low 19 
Contact Form by BestWebSoft – Advanced WP Contact Form Builder for WordPress 30K+ · 4.0★ (292)
wp.org #16 ↓1 3 too high 20 
Tooltipy (tooltips for WP) 1K+ · 4.6★ (68)
wp.org #13 ↓2 7 too high 21 
Gallery by BestWebSoft – Customizable Image and Photo Galleries for WordPress 10K+ · 4.0★ (158)
wp.org #18 ↑1 3 too high 22 
ExactMetrics – Google Analytics Dashboard for WordPress (Website Stats Plugin) 200K+ · 2.5★ (1546)
wp.org #21 1 too high 23 
Hide Tooltips on Hover – Clean Up Title Attributes Without Losing Accessibility 4K+ · 5.0★ (10) thin reviews
wp.org #24 ↓1 1 too low 24 Glossary Tooltip – Highlight Terms & Show Tooltips 100+ · 5.0★ (2) thin reviews
wp.org #14 10 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.