AI Scrape Protect
by Daan Verbaan · AI
Protect your website from AI scraping by adding opt-out instructions to your robots.txt file and including meta tags in the HTML ``.
Try it live opens a temporary test site in your browser, which can take about 20 seconds to load. Plugins that rely on outside services or a full server may not work completely there.
Health
B 84/100
Few reviews
Active installs
400+
≈400 estimated
Momentum
-1%
downloads vs prior 30d
Biggest opportunity: Swap “ai” and “security” for “ai bots” and “ai bot”. “ai” isn't earning its slot: you're not in the first 24 results for its own search. “ai bots” sits at #14 untagged, close enough for a declared tag to move it up. “security” isn't earning its slot: you're not in the first 24 results for its own search. “ai bot” sits at #15 untagged, close enough for a declared tag to move it up. All five slots are taken, so one has to go.
84 health vs 77 average across 3,394 AI plugins
Install conversion
How it's measured →7.0%
of downloads still active
At least 400 of 5.7K lifetime downloads are still running, above its category: the median AI plugin keeps 1.4%, across 1,010 plugins.
Downloads count every update, not just first installs, so older and more frequently released plugins read lower. Compare against other AI plugins, not across the directory. wp.org reports active installs as the bottom of a band, so the real rate is this or higher.
This plugin shipped 3 releases in the last 12 months, and every existing install that updated counted as another download. wp.org publishes no split between first installs and updates, so we show the raw rate rather than guess at one.
Details
Directory ranking optimization
How it's scored →How well this listing is tuned to rank in WordPress.org search, on the factors an owner controls. Not popularity, optimization.
Excellent listing optimization
Most to gain: Rating quality
Updated 43 days ago
Tested up to WordPress 7.1.4, the current branch or newer
4.7★ over 3 reviews, smoothed to 4.13★ and held back under 25 reviews
5 of 5 tags set · short description in place
1 of 1 support threads resolved in the last 2 months
To rank higher: Too few reviews to rank on quality — nudge happy users to leave one.
Get the full rank-higher report →Search visibility
How it's tracked →Directory searches this plugin turns up in, and which way each one is moving. WordPress.org publishes no history of search positions, so this starts the day we first tracked a keyword and never backfills.
39
Momentum
Losing ground
-0.0
Velocity
places per keyword, 28d
24%
Breadth
of keywords climbing, 28d
-0.9
Acceleration
recent half vs earlier
wp.org is where the directory puts the plugin for that search. On merit is where it would sit if results were ranked on rating, support and updates, without the install boost. The last column is how far the wp.org position moved, from our first reading in the last 90 days to the latest.
| Keyword | wp.org | On merit | wp.org move, 90 days |
|---|---|---|---|
| ai scraping protection your tag | #2 | #5 | 0 |
| scraping your tag | #5 | #14 | down 1 |
| protect website | #6 | #19 | up 4 |
| protect | #18 | #23 | up 3 |
| ai bots | #14 | #20 | 0 |
| opt out | #21 | #23 | up 2 |
| ai bot | #15 | #20 | 0 |
| ai detection | #16 | #21 | up 3 |
| protect web page | #10 | #23 | up 2 |
| instructions | #24 | #23 | — |
| disable ai | #24 | #22 | 0 |
| protect page | #14 | #22 | down 2 |
| protect your wordpress site | #23 | #24 | up 1 |
| ai protection | #24 | #22 | down 2 |
| ai your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| robots.txt your tag | Not checked yet | ||
| security your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
49 searches this plugin appeared in over the last 90 days, 14 listed. 35 left out as unrelated or noise (years, numbers, stray words). 2 of its tags aren't in the top 24 for their own search.
What to do about it
- Swap “ai” and “security” for “ai bots” and “ai bot”. “ai” isn't earning its slot: you're not in the first 24 results for its own search. “ai bots” sits at #14 untagged, close enough for a declared tag to move it up. “security” isn't earning its slot: you're not in the first 24 results for its own search. “ai bot” sits at #15 untagged, close enough for a declared tag to move it up. All five slots are taken, so one has to go.
Daily downloads
Since 19 Sep 2024 · 773 days · wp.org + Plugin Pulse archive
30-day downloads
Rolling 30-day volume · peak 1.2K · peaks are release surges
Directory rank vs rivals
wp.org popularity rank over time · higher is better · when a rival's line climbs above yours, they've overtaken you
Rating trend
Star average over time · dips mark rough releases
Health trend
Composite health score, snapshotted daily
Update activity
How busy the existing users are, measured as downloads in the last 30 days for every 1,000 active sites. A spike means a new release everyone's pulling; a long, slow decline means an aging user base that updates less.
Release cadence
Occasionally updatedHow often this plugin actually ships. A steady rhythm is the maintenance signal a single "last updated" date can't show.
3
releases in the last 12 months
1mo ago
latest release · v5.1 · 18 Sep 2026
19
tagged releases on record
Recent releases
What its installed base runs
via wordpress.orgShare of active installs on each version of this plugin. Green is the current release; a big slice on older versions is a user base that has stopped updating.
Estimated active installs
The public count shows “400+”. Our estimate pins where the real number sits.
Crossed into this band 18 days ago and a band this size takes about a year or more to cross, so the real count is still just over 400.
At the current install trend, crossing 500+ in roughly 81 days.
Install history since 18 Sep 2024
Recent reviews
All reviews on wp.org ↗- ★★★★★ metajohn11mo ago
The plugin works great. The only thing I miss is a simple interface where I can select, using checkboxes, the bots I want to block or allow in the robots.txt file. I believe this would be extremely helpful and would represent a significant quality improvement for the plugin, Dan. For example, I currently have Bingbot blocked, and I would like to be able to fix this without having to modify the code or the plugin itself.4 starts for now! 5 if you do something with that! See u and good job
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ Marten Moolenaar1.3y ago
Really a super handy plugin. For me personally, I’d like to be able to manage the settings. So I’m looking forward to the next version. Or maybe interaction with the wikipedia entry List_of_bots.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ hagetisse1.7y ago
For me, it’s important that the content that I worked so hard on isn’t used without my permission. This plugin helps me keep AI scraper bots off my website. I tested several of them and it works! Also, it is really easy to manage and looks like it gets updated very regularly, which is essential at the pace that things are moving. Long story short, I’ve installed it on both my websites. Very happy.
Read on wp.org ↗
Behavioral tests
via WP HiveAutomated install-time checks, tested on PHP 8.1.12 · WP 7.0.1
Languages
via translate.wordpress.orgTranslated into 1 language, 0 at 90% or more
AI assistants
How it's measured →Whether ChatGPT and Claude name this plugin when asked the category question, and whether the readme gives them something to quote.
Not measured yet for this plugin’s topics. Its tracked searches are not among the measured topics. See the topics measured so far.
Readme readiness
6 of 8 pass · checked 28 Oct 2026Can an assistant quote this readme? Eight deterministic checks over the wp.org listing, no model involved.
- ✓ Says what it does "Protect your website from AI scraping by adding opt-out instructions to your robots.txt file and including..."
- ✓ Has a FAQ 10 questions in the FAQ.
- ✓ FAQ asks real questions 10 of 10 read like questions a user would type.
- ! Names who it is for One audience phrase ("for developers"); say who the plugin is for and what they use it for.
- ✓ Names what it works with Mentions Multisite.
- ! Headings and lists 0 headings and 1 list; assistants quote headed sections and bullet lists, not paragraphs.
- ✓ Enough to quote 2,053 characters of description.
- ✓ Tags match the text 3 of 5 tags appear in the text; "AI scraping protection", "security" do not.
Growth timeline
Install-tier crossings we have observed, and how long each tier took to outgrow
- 2026-10-13 300+ → 400+ up after 61 days in tier
- 2026-08-13 200+ → 300+ up after 155 days in tier
- 2026-03-11 100+ → 200+ up after 169 days in tier
- 2025-09-23 90+ → 100+ up after 2 days in tier
- 2025-09-21 100+ → 90+ down after 1 days in tier
- 2025-09-20 90+ → 100+ up after 13 days in tier
- 2025-09-07 80+ → 90+ up after 17 days in tier
- 2025-08-21 70+ → 80+ up after 4 days in tier
Competes with
The plugins that solve the same job, ranked by shared tags then reach, closest match first. The letter on the right is each plugin's health grade (A best, F worst).
-
Jetpack – AI Agents & MCP, Security, Backup & Analytics 3M+ installs · 3.7★ · 2 shared tags B -
Block AI Crawlers 2K+ installs · 4.1★ · 2 shared tags B -
Elementor Website Builder – more than just a page builder 10M+ installs · 4.5★ · 1 shared tag A -
Wordfence Security – Firewall, Malware Scan, and Login Security 5M+ installs · 4.7★ · 1 shared tag A -
Hostinger Tools 3M+ installs · 3.6★ · 1 shared tag B -
Really Simple Security – Simple and Performant Security (formerly Really Simple SSL) 3M+ installs · 4.9★ · 1 shared tag A
Embed this report card
Drop a live Pulse card for AI Scrape Protect into a readme, a review or a deck. It updates itself.
<iframe src="https://plugins.wpmayor.com/embed/ai-scrape-protect" width="480" height="300" style="border:0" loading="lazy" title="AI Scrape Protect — Plugin Pulse"></iframe> AI Scrape Protect: 400+ active installs, 4.7★ (3 reviews). Plugin Pulse (WP Mayor), as of 2026-10-31. https://plugins.wpmayor.com/plugin/ai-scrape-protect
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