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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “wp scrollbar”

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 “wp scrollbar”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 6 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

Advanced Scrollbar – Give Your Site a Sleek Branded Scrolling Feel shows at wp.org #9 but places #23 on merit, a gap of 14 places. Its 600+ installs carry it up the search order; its 3.0★ average from 7 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Folders – Unlimited Folders to Organize Media Library Folder, Pages, Posts, File Manager places #12 on merit, 5.0★ from 1525 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 WP Store Locator 40K+ · 4.8★ (312) wp.org #1 ↑1 2 WP Rollback – Rollback Plugins and Themes 200K+ · 4.9★ (215) wp.org #3 1 too low 3 WP Chat App 100K+ · 4.9★ (222) wp.org #5 ↓1 2 too low 4 Advanced Custom Fields (ACF®) 2M+ · 4.5★ (1440) wp.org #4 ↑1 5 Modula Image Gallery – Photo Grid & Video Gallery 100K+ · 4.7★ (616) wp.org #7 2 too low 6 PWA for WP – Progressive Web Apps Made Simple 10K+ · 4.6★ (230) wp.org #6 7 Kadence Security – Password, Two Factor Authentication, and Brute Force Protection 700K+ · 4.6★ (3992) wp.org #8 1 too low 8 Scrollbar 300+ · 4.8★ (5) wp.org #2 ↓1 6 too high 9 Imagify Image Optimization: Optimize Images | Compress & Convert to WebP/AVIF 900K+ · 4.3★ (1656) wp.org #10 ↓1 1 too low 10 Dark Mode – Improve Accessibility with AI Powered Dark Theme 20K+ · 4.5★ (391) wp.org #14 ↓1 4 too low 11 WP Social Ninja – Embed Social Feeds, User Reviews & Chat Widgets 30K+ · 4.8★ (71) wp.org #11 ↑2 12 Folders – Unlimited Folders to Organize Media Library Folder, Pages, Posts, File Manager 90K+ · 5.0★ (1525) wp.org #23 ↓1 11 too low 13 WP Editor 20K+ · 4.5★ (95) wp.org #13 ↓1 14 Carousel Slider Block for Gutenberg 50K+ · 4.8★ (59) wp.org #16 2 too low 15 Darkify – Dark Mode & Night Mode for Website & Admin (Dark Theme Included) 1K+ · 4.7★ (27) wp.org #17 2 too low 16 Smooth Page Scroll Up/Down Buttons 2K+ · 5.0★ (21) wp.org #20 4 too low 17 AnimateGL – WebGL & CSS Scroll Animations and Hover Effects for Gutenberg and Elementor 2K+ · 5.0★ (22) wp.org #21 4 too low 18 استایل مدیریت وردپرس 3K+ · 4.7★ (23) wp.org #19 1 too low 19 CCI Posts Carousel All In One 2K+ · 4.6★ (27) wp.org #22 ↓5 3 too low 20 Search Insights – Privacy-Friendly Search Analytics 3K+ · 4.9★ (29) wp.org #18 2 too high 21 WP Flow Plus 800+ · 5.0★ (6) wp.org #15 6 too high 22 WPC Buy Now Button for WooCommerce 10K+ · 4.7★ (15) wp.org #24 ↓1 2 too low 23 Advanced Scrollbar – Give Your Site a Sleek Branded Scrolling Feel 600+ · 3.0★ (7) wp.org #9 ↑1 14 too high 24 Hide Scrollbar Force 50+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #12 12 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.