Banhammer – Monitor Site Traffic, Block Bad Users and Bots
by Jeff Starr · Blocks
Also makes 30 other plugins · 1.1M+ installs across the portfolio →
Monitor traffic and ban unwanted visitors. Block any user or IP address so they can't access your site.
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
A 88/100
no flags
Active installs
1K+
≈1.9K estimated
Momentum
+5%
downloads vs prior 30d
Biggest opportunity: Swap “block” and “monitor” for “bad” and “interactivity api”. “block” isn't earning its slot: you're not in the first 24 results for its own search. “bad” sits at #8 untagged, close enough for a declared tag to move it up. “monitor” isn't earning its slot: you're not in the first 24 results for its own search. “interactivity api” sits at #23 untagged, close enough for a declared tag to move it up. All five slots are taken, so one has to go.
88 health vs 71 average across 2,523 Blocks plugins
Install conversion
How it's measured →1.8%
of downloads still active
At least 1K of 54.1K lifetime downloads are still running, in line with its category: the median Blocks plugin keeps 2.1%, across 1,578 plugins.
Downloads count every update, not just first installs, so older and more frequently released plugins read lower. Compare against other Blocks 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 4 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
Well tuned across the board
Updated 83 days ago
Tested up to WordPress 7.1.4, the current branch or newer
4.4★ over 19 reviews, smoothed to 4.18★ 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
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.
47
Momentum
Holding steady
+0.5
Velocity
places per keyword, 27d
35%
Breadth
of keywords climbing, 27d
+0.1
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| ban your tag | #7 | #14 | up 2 |
| bad | #8 | #17 | 0 |
| user agent ban | #3 | #6 | up 2 |
| bots your tag | #12 | #18 | up 4 |
| traffic | #19 | #21 | up 5 |
| bad bots | #8 | #15 | up 3 |
| ban user | #11 | #22 | up 1 |
| traffic monitor | #12 | #18 | 0 |
| interactivity api | #23 | #15 | down 2 |
| block traffic | #15 | #21 | 0 |
| user traffic | #16 | #22 | up 3 |
| ip ban | #15 | #17 | up 3 |
| block bots | #17 | #19 | up 3 |
| ban ip | #17 | #18 | 0 |
| site monitor | #22 | #18 | up 2 |
| temporary access for users | #24 | #21 | 0 |
| block your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| monitor your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| security your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
67 searches this plugin appeared in over the last 90 days, 16 listed. 51 left out as unrelated or noise (years, numbers, stray words). 3 of its tags aren't in the top 24 for their own search.
What to do about it
- Swap “block” and “monitor” for “bad” and “interactivity api”. “block” isn't earning its slot: you're not in the first 24 results for its own search. “bad” sits at #8 untagged, close enough for a declared tag to move it up. “monitor” isn't earning its slot: you're not in the first 24 results for its own search. “interactivity api” sits at #23 untagged, close enough for a declared tag to move it up. All five slots are taken, so one has to go.
- One page off on “bots”. #12 puts you just past the first ten results, where almost all the clicks stop. The gap to close is small.
Daily downloads
Since 5 Oct 2022 · 1,488 days · wp.org + Plugin Pulse archive
30-day downloads
Rolling 30-day volume · peak 2.2K · 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
Actively maintainedHow often this plugin actually ships. A steady rhythm is the maintenance signal a single "last updated" date can't show.
4
releases in the last 12 months
3mo ago
latest release · v3.5.3 · 9 Aug 2026
42
tagged releases on record
Recent releases
What its installed base runs
via wordpress.orgShare of active installs on each version of this plugin · 79% run the current release. 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 “1K+”. Our estimate pins where the real number sits.
Crossed into this band 3.7 years ago; a band this size takes about a year or more to cross, which places it about 90% of the way through.
Install history since 28 Jan 2020
Security history
via Wordfence IntelligenceThe 1 disclosed vulnerability is patched in the current version (3.5.3). Sites still on an older version should update.
Vulnerability records provided by Wordfence Intelligence. Copyright 2012-2026 Defiant Inc. License and terms.
CVE records: Copyright 1999-2026 The MITRE Corporation. CVE terms of use.
Behavioral tests
via WP HiveAutomated install-time checks, tested on PHP 8.1.12 · WP 7.0.1
Languages
via translate.wordpress.orgTranslated into 4 languages, 1 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
7 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 "Monitor traffic and ban unwanted visitors. Block any user or IP address so they can't access your site."
- ✓ Has a FAQ 4 questions in the FAQ.
- ✓ FAQ asks real questions 4 of 4 read like questions a user would type.
- ✓ Names who it is for Names its audience or use cases ("perfect for", "who want").
- ✓ Names what it works with Mentions Gutenberg, Block editor, Google Analytics, REST API and 1 more.
- ! Headings and lists 0 headings and 6 lists; assistants quote headed sections and bullet lists, not paragraphs.
- ✓ Enough to quote 4,440 characters of description.
- ✓ Tags match the text All 5 tags appear in the text.
Growth timeline
Install-tier crossings we have observed, and how long each tier took to outgrow
- 2023-02-22 900+ → 1K+ up after 2 days in tier
- 2023-02-20 1K+ → 900+ down after 1 days in tier
- 2023-02-19 900+ → 1K+ up after 10 days in tier
- 2023-02-09 1K+ → 900+ down after 128 days in tier
- 2022-10-04 900+ → 1K+ up after 9 days in tier
- 2022-09-25 1K+ → 900+ down after 244 days in tier
- 2022-01-24 900+ → 1K+ up after 161 days in tier
- 2021-08-16 500+ → 900+ up after 288 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).
-
BBQ Firewall – Fast & Powerful Firewall Security 100K+ installs · 4.9★ · 2 shared tags A -
Login No Captcha reCAPTCHA 50K+ installs · 4.4★ · 2 shared tags A -
Shield Security – Smart Bot Blocking, Brute-Force Login Protection & File Scanning 30K+ installs · 4.8★ · 2 shared tags A -
Blackhole for Bad Bots 30K+ installs · 4.7★ · 2 shared tags A -
Spider Blocker 20K+ installs · 3.9★ · 2 shared tags D -
WP-Ban 8K+ installs · 3.7★ · 2 shared tags B
Embed this report card
Drop a live Pulse card for Banhammer – Monitor Site Traffic, Block Bad Users and Bots into a readme, a review or a deck. It updates itself.
<iframe src="https://plugins.wpmayor.com/embed/banhammer" width="480" height="300" style="border:0" loading="lazy" title="Banhammer – Monitor Site Traffic, Block Bad Users and Bots — Plugin Pulse"></iframe> Banhammer – Monitor Site Traffic, Block Bad Users and Bots: 1K+ active installs, 4.4★ (19 reviews). Plugin Pulse (WP Mayor), as of 2026-10-31. https://plugins.wpmayor.com/plugin/banhammer
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