Simple Captcha for WPForms
by Andreas Münch · Forms
Also makes 2 other plugins · 11.2K+ installs across the portfolio →
Add an additional Captcha field to WPForms to prevent spam.
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
C 58/100
Stale · Few reviews
Active installs
200+
≈280 estimated
Momentum
+2%
low volume, under 1,000 downloads a month
Biggest opportunity: “captcha”, “form” and “spam” 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.
58 health vs 65 average across 2,516 Forms plugins
Install conversion
How it's measured →7.8%
of downloads still active
At least 200 of 2.6K lifetime downloads are still running, above its category: the median Forms plugin keeps 1.2%, across 1,671 plugins.
Downloads count every update, not just first installs, so older and more frequently released plugins read lower. Compare against other Forms 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.
Room to improve
Most to gain: Update recency
Updated 585 days ago, past the ~180 days where wp.org starts discounting
Tested up to WordPress 6.7.11; the current branch is 7.1
5.0★ over 1 review, weighted for review count to 4.1★ and held back under 25 reviews
4 of 5 tags set · short description in place
To rank higher: Last updated 585 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| simple captcha | #23 | #23 | 0 |
| captcha your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| form your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| spam your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| wpforms your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
1 search this plugin appeared in over the last 90 days. 4 of its tags aren't in the top 24 for their own search.
What to do about it
- “captcha”, “form” and “spam” 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 16 Feb 2023 · 1,356 days · wp.org + Plugin Pulse archive
30-day downloads
Rolling 30-day volume · peak 177 · 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.
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.
What its installed base runs
via wordpress.orgShare of active installs on each version of this plugin · 100% 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 2.5 years ago; a band this size takes about a year or more to cross, which places it about 80% of the way through.
Install history since 15 Feb 2023
Recent reviews
All reviews on wp.org ↗- ★★★★★ pablolp3.0y ago
It’s simple but it works. Great!
Read on wp.org ↗
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
3 of 8 pass · checked 2 Nov 2026Can an assistant quote this readme? Eight deterministic checks over the wp.org listing, no model involved.
- ✓ Says what it does "Add an additional Captcha field to WPForms to prevent spam."
- ! Has a FAQ Only 1 question in the FAQ; 3 or more gives an assistant something to match.
- ! FAQ asks real questions 0 of 1 FAQ entries are headings, not questions ("undefined").
- ! Names who it is for Never says who the plugin is for or what they use it for.
- ✓ Names what it works with Mentions WPForms.
- ! Headings and lists 1 heading and 1 list; assistants quote headed sections and bullet lists, not paragraphs.
- ! Enough to quote 249 characters of description; under 1,000 there is little to quote.
- ✓ Tags match the text All 4 tags appear in the text.
Growth timeline
Install-tier crossings we have observed, and how long each tier took to outgrow
- 2024-05-01 100+ → 200+ up after 196 days in tier
- 2023-10-18 90+ → 100+ up after 10 days in tier
- 2023-10-08 80+ → 90+ up after 19 days in tier
- 2023-09-19 70+ → 80+ up after 11 days in tier
- 2023-09-08 60+ → 70+ up after 20 days in tier
- 2023-08-19 50+ → 60+ up after 17 days in tier
- 2023-08-02 40+ → 50+ up after 29 days in tier
- 2023-07-04 30+ → 40+ up after 16 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).
-
Honeypot Plus for Contact Form 7 900+ installs · 3.8★ · 3 shared tags B -
Simple CAPTCHA with Cloudflare Turnstile 200K+ installs · 4.6★ · 2 shared tags A -
Gravity Forms Zero Spam 100K+ installs · 4.2★ · 2 shared tags A -
Image CAPTCHA for Contact Form 7 and WPForms by HookAndHook (DSGVO/GDPR) 70K+ installs · 4.5★ · 2 shared tags A -
hCaptcha for WP 70K+ installs · 4.5★ · 2 shared tags A -
Simple Login Captcha 10K+ installs · 3.9★ · 2 shared tags B
Embed this report card
Drop a live Pulse card for Simple Captcha for WPForms into a readme, a review or a deck. It updates itself.
<iframe src="https://plugins.wpmayor.com/embed/simple-captcha-wpforms" width="480" height="300" style="border:0" loading="lazy" title="Simple Captcha for WPForms — Plugin Pulse"></iframe> Simple Captcha for WPForms: 200+ active installs, 5.0★ (1 reviews). Plugin Pulse (WP Mayor), as of 2026-11-03. https://plugins.wpmayor.com/plugin/simple-captcha-wpforms
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