REST API Guard
by Sean Fisher · Privacy & Consent
Also makes 4 other plugins · 10.3K+ installs across the portfolio →
Restrict and control anonymous access to the WordPress REST API, with optional JSON Web Token (JWT) authentication.
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
200+
≈200 estimated
Momentum
+129%
downloads vs prior 30d
Biggest opportunity: Swap “authentication” and “privacy” for “json web token” and “rest”. “authentication” isn't earning its slot: you're not in the first 24 results for its own search. “json web token” sits at #12 untagged, close enough for a declared tag to move it up. “privacy” isn't earning its slot: you're not in the first 24 results for its own search. “rest” sits at #12 untagged, close enough for a declared tag to move it up. All five slots are taken, so one has to go.
84 health vs 69 average across 910 Privacy & Consent plugins
Install conversion
How it's measured →4.1%
of downloads still active
At least 200 of 4.9K lifetime downloads are still running, above its category: the median Privacy & Consent plugin keeps 2.2%, across 502 plugins.
Downloads count every update, not just first installs, so older and more frequently released plugins read lower. Compare against other Privacy & Consent plugins, not across the directory. wp.org reports active installs as the bottom of a band, so the real rate is this or higher.
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 18 days ago
Tested up to WordPress 7.1.4, the current branch or newer
5.0★ over 2 reviews, smoothed to 4.13★ and held back under 25 reviews
5 of 5 tags set · short description in place
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.
68
Momentum
Gaining ground
+2.0
Velocity
places per keyword, 28d
74%
Breadth
of keywords climbing, 28d
+2.6
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| guard | #3 | #6 | up 1 |
| rest api restriction | #3 | #19 | up 3 |
| page guard | #3 | #6 | up 2 |
| jwt your tag | #9 | #18 | up 1 |
| jwt authentication | #8 | #18 | 0 |
| rest | #12 | #20 | up 1 |
| rest api your tag | #12 | #20 | up 2 |
| json web token | #12 | #23 | up 6 |
| wordpress rest api | #17 | #22 | up 4 |
| block rest api | #9 | #22 | up 4 |
| json rest api | #11 | #21 | up 5 |
| api rest | #12 | #20 | up 3 |
| disable json api | #12 | #23 | up 6 |
| disable rest api | #12 | #24 | up 6 |
| rest api cache | #13 | #22 | up 3 |
| restrict anonymous | #14 | #24 | down 10 |
| json api | #18 | #21 | up 6 |
| api control | #20 | #24 | 0 |
| wp rest api | #20 | #23 | 0 |
| wp rest api cache | #21 | #24 | 0 |
| authentication your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| privacy your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| security your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
38 searches this plugin appeared in over the last 90 days, 20 listed. 16 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 “authentication” and “privacy” for “json web token” and “rest”. “authentication” isn't earning its slot: you're not in the first 24 results for its own search. “json web token” sits at #12 untagged, close enough for a declared tag to move it up. “privacy” isn't earning its slot: you're not in the first 24 results for its own search. “rest” sits at #12 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 “rest api”. #12 puts you just past the first ten results, where almost all the clicks stop. The gap to close is small.
Daily downloads
Since 31 Oct 2024 · 730 days · wp.org + Plugin Pulse archive
30-day downloads
Rolling 30-day volume · peak 480 · 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 21 Oct 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.
Estimated active installs
The public count shows “200+”. Our estimate pins where the real number sits.
Crossed into this band today and a band this size takes about a year or more to cross, so the real count is still just over 200.
Install history since 15 Sep 2026
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 Short description names no action; say what the plugin does for the 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 Never says who the plugin is for or what they use it for.
- ✓ Names what it works with Mentions REST API, WP-CLI.
- ✓ Headings and lists 9 headings and 2 lists.
- ✓ Enough to quote 4,502 characters of description.
- ✓ Tags match the text 3 of 5 tags appear in the text; "privacy", "security" do not.
Growth timeline
Install-tier crossings we have observed, and how long each tier took to outgrow
- 2026-10-31 100+ → 200+ up after 4 days in tier
- 2026-10-27 200+ → 100+ down after 1 days in tier
- 2026-10-26 100+ → 200+ 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).
-
SMNTCS Disable REST API User Endpoints 8K+ installs · 4.1★ · 3 shared tags B - L Limit Login Attempts 300K+ installs · 4.6★ · 2 shared tags C
-
WPS Limit Login 100K+ installs · 4.8★ · 2 shared tags A -
Two Factor 100K+ installs · 4.7★ · 2 shared tags A -
JWT Authentication for WP REST API 60K+ installs · 4.3★ · 2 shared tags B -
Google Authenticator 20K+ installs · 4.3★ · 2 shared tags A
Embed this report card
Drop a live Pulse card for REST API Guard into a readme, a review or a deck. It updates itself.
<iframe src="https://plugins.wpmayor.com/embed/rest-api-guard" width="480" height="300" style="border:0" loading="lazy" title="REST API Guard — Plugin Pulse"></iframe> REST API Guard: 200+ active installs, 5.0★ (2 reviews). Plugin Pulse (WP Mayor), as of 2026-10-31. https://plugins.wpmayor.com/plugin/rest-api-guard
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