PHP Native Password Hash
by Ayesh Karunaratne · Uncategorized
Also makes 6 other plugins · 5.2K+ installs across the portfolio →
Makes WordPress use PHP's native password_hash() functions for portable, stronger, and time-attack safe bcrypt and Argon2 hashes.
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 53/100
Stale · Likely abandoned · Few reviews
Active installs
1K+
≈2K estimated
Momentum
+30%
downloads vs prior 30d
Biggest opportunity: “password” isn't earning a slot. You list it, but you're not in the first 24 results for that search. WordPress.org counts only your first five tags, so free the slot for a search you can win.
53 health vs 58 average across 25,752 Uncategorized plugins
Install conversion
How it's measured →4.0%
of downloads still active
At least 1K of 25.3K lifetime downloads are still running, above its category: the median Uncategorized plugin keeps 0.6%, across 17,773 plugins.
Downloads count every update, not just first installs, so older and more frequently released plugins read lower. Compare against other Uncategorized 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
28/100Maintenance and integrity signals that tend to precede a WordPress.org removal. Not an official status, a heads-up to act.
- Not actively maintained. No update in about 2 years.
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.
Room to improve
Most to gain: Update recency
Updated 874 days ago, past the ~180 days where wp.org starts discounting
Tested up to WordPress 6.5.14; the current branch is 6.8
5.0★ over 6 reviews, smoothed to 4.20★ and held back under 25 reviews
5 of 5 tags set · short description in place
To rank higher: Last updated 874 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.
39
Momentum
Losing ground
-0.4
Velocity
places per keyword, 22d
20%
Breadth
of keywords climbing, 22d
+0.3
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| argon2 your tag | #3 | #2 | 0 |
| bcrypt your tag | #6 | #3 | down 2 |
| password hash your tag | #7 | #16 | up 1 |
| password hashing your tag | #10 | #9 | down 2 |
| hash | #24 | #22 | down 1 |
| hashing | #20 | #7 | 0 |
| password your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
11 searches this plugin appeared in over the last 90 days, 6 listed. 5 left out as unrelated or noise (years, numbers, stray words). 1 of its tags isn't in the top 24 for their own search.
What to do about it
- “password” isn't earning a slot. You list it, but you're not in the first 24 results for that search. WordPress.org counts only your first five tags, so free the slot for a search you can win.
Daily downloads
Since 5 Oct 2022 · 1,489 days · wp.org + Plugin Pulse archive
30-day downloads
Rolling 30-day volume · peak 1.4K · 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
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
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
2.4y ago
latest release · v3.0 · 10 Jun 2024
8
tagged releases on record
Recent releases
What its installed base runs
via wordpress.orgShare of active installs on each version of this plugin · 82% 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 months ago and the previous band took 5.1 years to cross, so the real count is still just under 2K.
Install history since 21 Oct 2020
Latest updates
via wp.org changelogRecent releases and news for this plugin
- — Version 1.0 Initial release. 1.0
- — Version 1.1 Fixed a bug for PHP 5.5 users whose PHP core lacks the time-safe hash_equals function, resulting in a fatal error. This version introduces a polyfill to add that functionality for PHP 5.5 users. Users with newer PHP vers 1.1
- — Version 1.2 This plugin now requires WordPress minimum version 3.9.2 the least, and uses the hash_equals() function polyfill provided by WordPress core. 1.2
- — Version 1.4 Skipped 1.3 version because a WIP Argon2i support conflicted with the bug fix (#2). Argon2i support will be added in a future release. Fixes an error with password validation when the PasswordHash class from WordPress co 1.4
- — Version 1.5 Fix a security issue with the password verification when updating from a password_hash()-compatible hashing algorithm to another. Thanks to Steve Thomas (Sc00bz on GitHub). 1.5
- — Version 2.0 This is a major rewrite of the plugin. This version still requires PHP 5.5, but WordPress 5.2+ now requires PHP version 5.6 to function, and this is enforced at plugin level as well. Core functionality of the plugin is e 2.0
Behavioral tests
via WP HiveAutomated install-time checks, tested on PHP 8.1.12 · WP 6.2.2
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
5 of 8 pass · checked 29 Oct 2026Can an assistant quote this readme? Eight deterministic checks over the wp.org listing, no model involved.
- ✓ Says what it does "Makes WordPress use PHP's native password_hash() functions for portable, stronger, and time-attack safe bcr..."
- ✓ Has a FAQ 6 questions in the FAQ.
- ✓ FAQ asks real questions 6 of 6 read like questions a user would type.
- ! 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 1 list; assistants quote headed sections and bullet lists, not paragraphs.
- ✓ Enough to quote 1,807 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
- 2026-08-01 2K+ → 1K+ down after 1865 days in tier
- 2021-06-23 1K+ → 2K+ up after 314 days in tier
- 2020-08-13 900+ → 1K+ up after 251 days in tier
- 2019-12-06 300+ → 900+ up
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).
- P Password bcrypt 1K+ installs · 4.1★ · 2 shared tags D
-
PPWP – Password Protect Pages 30K+ installs · 4.6★ · 1 shared tag A -
Google Authenticator 20K+ installs · 4.3★ · 1 shared tag A -
Frontend Reset Password 10K+ installs · 4.3★ · 1 shared tag B -
Passster – Password Protect Pages and Content 10K+ installs · 4.2★ · 1 shared tag B -
ContentProtector – password protect your page, post or text 5K+ installs · 3.6★ · 1 shared tag
Embed this report card
Drop a live Pulse card for PHP Native Password Hash into a readme, a review or a deck. It updates itself.
<iframe src="https://plugins.wpmayor.com/embed/password-hash" width="480" height="300" style="border:0" loading="lazy" title="PHP Native Password Hash — Plugin Pulse"></iframe> PHP Native Password Hash: 1K+ active installs, 5.0★ (6 reviews). Plugin Pulse (WP Mayor), as of 2026-11-01. https://plugins.wpmayor.com/plugin/password-hash
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