HTTP Basic Auth
by Grzegorz Rola · Security
Also makes 1 other plugin · 200+ installs across the portfolio →
Basic Auth for Wordpress.
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
D 42/100
Stale · Likely abandoned · Few reviews
Active installs
200+
≈250 estimated
Momentum
+14%
low volume, under 1,000 downloads a month
Biggest opportunity: “auth”, “basic auth” and “http auth” aren't earning a slot. You list them, but you're not in the first 24 results for those searches. WordPress.org counts only your first five tags, so free the slot for a search you can win.
42 health vs 66 average across 1,786 Security plugins
Install conversion
How it's measured →2.0%
of downloads still active
At least 200 of 10.2K lifetime downloads are still running, above its category: the median Security plugin keeps 1.4%, across 1,061 plugins.
Downloads count every update, not just first installs, so older and more frequently released plugins read lower. Compare against other Security plugins, not across the directory. wp.org reports active installs as the bottom of a band, so the real rate is this or higher.
Removal-risk signals
53/100Maintenance and integrity signals that tend to precede a WordPress.org removal. Not an official status, a heads-up to act.
- Long abandoned. No update in 4+ years — the top precursor to removal once a vulnerability is found.
- Falling behind WordPress. Tested up to WordPress 5.9.20.
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.
Under-optimized
Most to gain: Update recency
Updated 1710 days ago, past the ~180 days where wp.org starts discounting
Tested up to WordPress 5.9.20; the current branch is 7.1
1.0★ over 1 review, weighted for review count to 4.0★ and held back under 25 reviews
5 of 5 tags set · short description under 30 characters
To rank higher: Last updated 1710 days ago — ship an update; wp.org decays a listing's search weight after ~180 days.
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.
Not enough tracked days yet to call a direction. Momentum needs at least three keywords measured a week or more apart.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| auth your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| basic auth your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| http auth your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| http basic auth your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| security your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
0 searches this plugin appeared in over the last 90 days. 5 of its tags aren't in the top 24 for their own search.
What to do about it
- “auth”, “basic auth” and “http auth” aren't earning a slot. You list them, but you're not in the first 24 results for those searches. WordPress.org counts only your first five tags, so free the slot for a search you can win.
Daily downloads
Since 5 Oct 2022 · 1,491 days · wp.org + Plugin Pulse archive
30-day downloads
Rolling 30-day volume · peak 196 · peaks are release surges
Directory rank
Ranked about #11,300 to #12,900, alongside the other plugins at 200+ installs. Plugins with the same install count swap places between wp.org requests, so this is where most of them sit. Checked monthly, last on 1 Nov 2026.
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
No release in a yearHow often this plugin actually ships. A steady rhythm is the maintenance signal a single "last updated" date can't show.
0
releases in the last 12 months
4.7y ago
latest release · v1.1.0 · 27 Feb 2022
2
tagged releases on record
Recent releases
What its installed base runs
via wordpress.orgShare of active installs on each version of this plugin · 76% 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 “200+”. Our estimate pins where the real number sits.
Crossed into this band 15 months ago; the previous band took 2.3 years to cross, which places it about 50% of the way through.
Install history since 4 Oct 2022
Recent reviews
All reviews on wp.org ↗- ★★★★★ Fixdemonium3.9y ago
I specifically chose Frontend to add HTTP auth and it only prompts auth popup on login pages. Not working as advertised.
Read on wp.org ↗
Languages
via translate.wordpress.orgTranslated into 2 languages, 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.
This plugin’s searches fall outside the topics measured so far. See the topics measured so far.
Readme readiness
0 of 8 pass · checked 3 Nov 2026Can an assistant quote this readme? Eight deterministic checks over the wp.org listing, no model involved.
- ! Says what it does Short description is 25 characters, too short to say what the plugin does.
- ! Has a FAQ No FAQ section.
- ! FAQ asks real questions No FAQ to judge.
- ! Names who it is for Never says who the plugin is for or what they use it for.
- ! Names what it works with Names no plugin, service or platform it works with.
- ! Headings and lists 0 headings and 0 lists; assistants quote headed sections and bullet lists, not paragraphs.
- ! Enough to quote 377 characters of description; under 1,000 there is little to quote.
- ! Tags match the text Only 2 of 5 tags appear in the text ("http auth", "http basic auth", "security" missing).
Growth timeline
Install-tier crossings we have observed, and how long each tier took to outgrow
- 2025-08-05 300+ → 200+ down after 844 days in tier
- 2023-04-14 400+ → 300+ down
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).
- W WP BASIC Auth 3K+ installs · 3.8★ · 2 shared tags D
-
WP Cron HTTP Auth 1K+ installs · 4.5★ · 2 shared tags A -
Wordfence Security – Firewall, Malware Scan, and Login Security 5M+ installs · 4.7★ · 1 shared tag A -
HTTP Auth 6K+ installs · 4.0★ · 1 shared tag C -
Manage XML-RPC 5K+ installs · 3.7★ · 1 shared tag D -
WP Basic Authentication 2K+ installs · 4.2★ · 1 shared tag B
Embed this report card
Drop a live Pulse card for HTTP Basic Auth into a readme, a review or a deck. It updates itself.
<iframe src="https://plugins.wpmayor.com/embed/http-basic-auth" width="480" height="300" style="border:0" loading="lazy" title="HTTP Basic Auth — Plugin Pulse"></iframe> HTTP Basic Auth: 200+ active installs, 1.0★ (1 reviews). Plugin Pulse (WP Mayor), as of 2026-11-03. https://plugins.wpmayor.com/plugin/http-basic-auth
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