wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “admin authentication”
wp.org orders by popularity, so a plugin a host bundled onto millions of sites, or a big-brand one that's slow and mediocre, can sit at the top. Our ranking is built to answer a different question: which of these is actually worth installing. How this works →
For “admin authentication”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 12 of the top 20.
wp.org search ranks on
Install count (uncapped), the raw star average, freshness, and support. Popularity dominates, so the biggest install base usually wins regardless of how it got there.
We add
A cap on the install boost, volume-weighted ratings, and signals wp.org can't see: whether the install base is organic or host-pushed, and its risk of being pulled.
Ranked above its merit
WP Basic Authentication shows at wp.org #7 but places #19 on merit, a gap of 12 places. Its 2K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 5 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
Buried gem
WP Mail SMTP by WPForms – SMTP for Reliable Email Delivery with Gmail, Outlook, Amazon SES, Brevo, Other SMTP & More places #10 on merit, 4.8★ from 5209 reviews, but shows at wp.org #20. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.
Admin and Site Enhancements (ASE) 200K+ · 5.0★ (423)
wp.org #1 2 
WP 2FA – Two-factor authentication for WordPress 100K+ · 4.7★ (184)
wp.org #2 3 
Wordfence Security – Firewall, Malware Scan, and Login Security 5M+ · 4.7★ (5040)
wp.org #3 4 
Kadence Security – Password, Two Factor Authentication, and Brute Force Protection 700K+ · 4.6★ (3992)
wp.org #5 ↓1 1 too low 5 
Two Factor Authentication 20K+ · 4.4★ (77)
wp.org #4 ↑1 1 too high 6 
JWT Authentication for WP REST APIs 10K+ · 4.4★ (74)
wp.org #6 7 
Really Simple Security – Simple and Performant Security (formerly Really Simple SSL) 3M+ · 4.9★ (8869)
wp.org #14 ↑1 7 too low 8 
BrikPanel: WooCommerce Dashboard & Analytics, Abandoned Cart Recovery, Order Export, Inventory Management & Bulk Editor 1K+ · 5.0★ (55)
wp.org #8 ↑2 9 
miniOrange 2FA – Two Factor Authentication for WordPress (Passkey, OTP, SMS, Email, Google Authenticator) 10K+ · 4.5★ (385)
wp.org #13 ↓2 4 too low 10 WP Mail SMTP by WPForms – SMTP for Reliable Email Delivery with Gmail, Outlook, Amazon SES, Brevo, Other SMTP & More 4M+ · 4.8★ (5209)
wp.org #20 ↓1 10 too low 11 
All-In-One Security (AIOS) – Security and Firewall 1M+ · 4.7★ (1720)
wp.org #17 6 too low 12 
JWT Authentication for WP REST API 60K+ · 4.4★ (53)
wp.org #10 ↓2 2 too high 13 
Security Plugin, Firewall & Malware Scanner with Auto Removal 40K+ · 4.8★ (397)
wp.org #24 11 too low 14 
Limit Login Attempts Security – Brute Force Protection, 2FA, Firewall & Login Security 1M+ · 4.8★ (1489)
wp.org #23 ↓1 9 too low 15 
FluentAuth – Login Security, Two-Factor Authentication, Passkeys & Social Login 10K+ · 4.1★ (35)
wp.org #9 6 too high 16 
ACF Frontend Admin by DynamiApps 8K+ · 4.5★ (160)
wp.org #22 ↓2 6 too low 17 
All In One Login 60K+ · 3.6★ (35)
wp.org #12 ↑1 5 too high 18 
Security Optimizer – The All-In-One Protection Plugin 1M+ · 4.5★ (157)
wp.org #21 3 too low 19 WP Basic Authentication 2K+ · 5.0★ (5) thin reviews
wp.org #7 12 too high 20 
Captcha Code 100K+ · 3.9★ (35)
wp.org #15 ↓1 5 too high 21 
Easy Basic Authentication – Add basic auth to site or admin area 800+ · 5.0★ (3) thin reviews
wp.org #11 ↑1 10 too high 22 
Two Factor (2FA) Authentication via Email 9K+ · 5.0★ (4) thin reviews
wp.org #16 6 too high 23 
Admin login URL Change 2K+ · 5.0★ (4) thin reviews
wp.org #18 5 too high 24 
Biometric Authentication 90+ · 4.7★ (3) thin reviews
wp.org #19 5 too high Merit ranking caps the install boost at 1M (wp.org leaves it uncapped), replaces the raw star average with a volume-weighted Bayesian score and a Wilson lower bound, and keeps wp.org's own freshness and compatibility decays. Method from the plugin-directory source; see Meta Trac #8298. Positions are tracked daily from the first visit to a keyword, so the small arrows show movement since tracking began.