wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “basic 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 “basic authentication”, we and wp.org disagree on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 13 of the top 20. 6 plugins are pushed down for signals wp.org ignores: errors, a host-installed base, or removal risk.
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 it throws errors on current PHP, whether the install base is organic or host-pushed, and its risk of being pulled.
Ranked above its merit
Easy Basic Authentication – Add basic auth to site or admin area shows at wp.org #2 but places #17 on merit, a gap of 15 places. Its 800+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 3 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 #9 on merit, 4.8★ from 5209 reviews, but shows at wp.org #14. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.
Kadence Security – Password, Two Factor Authentication, and Brute Force Protection 700K+ · 4.6★ (3992)
wp.org #3 2 too low 2 
WP Basic Authentication 2K+ · 5.0★ (5) thin reviews
wp.org #1 1 too high 3 
JWT Authentication for WP REST APIs 10K+ · 4.4★ (74)
wp.org #4 1 too low 4 
miniOrange 2FA – Two Factor Authentication for WordPress (OTP, SMS, Email, Google Authenticator) 10K+ · 4.5★ (385)
wp.org #7 3 too low 5 
All-In-One Security (AIOS) – Security and Firewall 1M+ · 4.7★ (1720)
wp.org #9 4 too low 6 
Complianz GDPR/CCPA Cookie Consent Banner 1M+ · 4.7★ (1667)
wp.org #10 4 too low 7 
WPvivid — Backup, Migration & Staging 900K+ · 4.9★ (1568)
wp.org #11 4 too low 8 
Jetpack – AI Agents & MCP, Security, Backup & Analytics 3M+ · 3.7★ (2408)
wp.org #8 9 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 #14 5 too low 10 
wpDataTables – WordPress Data Table, Dynamic Tables & Table Charts Plugin 60K+ · 4.5★ (449)
wp.org #12 2 too low 11 
MxChat – AI Chatbot & Content Generation for WordPress 2K+ · 5.0★ (31) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #5 6 too high 12 
JWT Authentication for WP REST API 60K+ · 4.4★ (53) not PHP-current
wp.org #6 6 too high 13 
Two Factor 100K+ · 4.7★ (209)
wp.org #16 3 too low 14 
Defender Security – Malware Scanner, Login Security & Firewall 80K+ · 4.8★ (334)
wp.org #21 7 too low 15 
WP-Members Membership Plugin 50K+ · 4.6★ (272)
wp.org #23 8 too low 16 
Simple CAPTCHA with Cloudflare Turnstile 200K+ · 4.7★ (262) not PHP-current
wp.org #17 1 too low 17 Easy Basic Authentication – Add basic auth to site or admin area 800+ · 5.0★ (3) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews
wp.org #2 15 too high 18 
WP Synchro – The Ultimate WordPress Migration Tool 2K+ · 5.0★ (30)
wp.org #15 3 too high 19 
Security Ninja – WordPress Security & Firewall 7K+ · 4.7★ (101)
wp.org #24 5 too low 20 
WPO365 | MICROSOFT 365 GRAPH MAILER 10K+ · 5.0★ (40)
wp.org #22 2 too low 21 
WP Hide & Security Enhancer 50K+ · 4.3★ (275) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #19 2 too high 22 
WP OAuth Server (OAuth Authentication) 3K+ · 3.8★ (41) not PHP-current
wp.org #13 9 too high 23 
All In One Login 60K+ · 3.6★ (35)
wp.org #20 3 too high 24 
Simple REST API Authenticaton with WooCommerce Credentials 60+ · 5.0★ (1) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews
wp.org #18 6 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.