Plugin Pulse Beta
← Rankings

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

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 “zooming”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 6 of the top 20. 4 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

Panorama Block – immerse visitors in 360 degree views shows at wp.org #10 but places #21 on merit, a gap of 11 places. Its 700+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 1 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Image Optimizer, Resizer and CDN – Sirv places #8 on merit, 4.9★ from 265 reviews, but shows at wp.org #18. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Definitely allow mobile zooming 7K+ · 5.0★ (54) wp.org #1 2 WP Image Zoom 10K+ · 4.3★ (119) wp.org #2 3 Product Gallery Slider, Additional Variation Images, Product Video, Product Image Zoom and Lightbox for WooCommerce – Reno Product Gallery (formerly WooGallery) 20K+ · 4.9★ (162) wp.org #4 1 too low 4 WP ImageViewer 700+ · 4.9★ (10) wp.org #3 1 too high 5 Simple Shortcode for Google Maps 3K+ · 4.6★ (46) wp.org #7 ↑1 2 too low 6 YITH WooCommerce Product Gallery & Image Zoom 10K+ · 3.6★ (71) wp.org #5 1 too high 7 Overlay Image Divi Module 2K+ · 5.0★ (17) wp.org #6 1 too high 8 Image Optimizer, Resizer and CDN – Sirv 900+ · 4.9★ (265) wp.org #18 ↑1 10 too low 9 WP Map Block – Google Maps, OpenStreetMap, Mapbox, Store & Shop Locator, Directory, Listings & Filters 20K+ · 4.0★ (20) wp.org #9 ↑1 10 Content Blocks Builder – Create blocks, repeater blocks with carousel, grid, popup layouts 1K+ · 5.0★ (13) wp.org #11 ↑2 1 too low 11 Popup builder with Gamification, Multi-Step Popups, Page-Level Targeting, and WooCommerce Triggers 70K+ · 5.0★ (7) wp.org #19 ↑2 8 too low 12 Full Screen Galleries 100+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #13 ↓1 1 too low 13 Show Fit File 100+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #14 1 too low 14 FoxyShop 70+ · 4.5★ (8) wp.org #21 ↓1 7 too low 15 Composite Products – Conditional Images 200+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #8 ↓1 7 too high 16 All In One Lightbox – show any media in beautiful popups 3K+ · 5.0★ (7) wp.org #22 6 too low 17 Verge3D Publishing and E-Commerce 400+ · 4.0★ (4) wp.org #16 1 too high 18 CBX Map for Google Map & OpenStreetMap 800+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #17 ↑1 1 too high 19 Interactive Globes – 3D World Maps 400+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #20 1 too low 20 FrontBlocks Site Tools 500+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #24 4 too low 21 Panorama Block – immerse visitors in 360 degree views 700+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #10 ↓1 11 too high 22 Chartsy 100+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #12 ↓1 10 too high 23 Web Accessibility Toolkit – Accessibility Checker & ARIA for WCAG, Section 508 & ADA Compliance 500+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #15 8 too high 24 3D Scene Viewer 20+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #23 1 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.